Chandigarh: In a strategic pre-poll move, the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) and Chandra Shekhar Azad's Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) have officially announced their alliance for the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections, which are scheduled for October 1. Under this alliance, the JJP will contest 70 of the 90 seats, while the Azad Samaj Party will compete for the remaining seats.

The alliance was formally announced by Dushyant Chautala of the JJP and Chandra Shekhar Azad in Delhi on Tuesday. Both leaders have pledged to prioritize the rights and welfare of farmers and aim to form a "government of the youth" if they secure victory.

In contrast, former state Home Minister Anil Vij has projected a win for the BJP, dismissing the regional parties as no longer significant competitors. Vij stated that the real contest is now between the BJP and Congress, predicting an easy defeat for Congress due to their alleged misdeeds.

The JJP has faced internal turmoil recently, with four out of ten of its legislators resigning from their party positions and memberships on Saturday. The resigning MLAs include former minister Anoop Dhanak, Devender Babli, Ram Karan Kala, and Ishwar Singh, who cited personal reasons for their departure. This leaves the party with only three legislators: Naina Chautala (Dushyant’s mother), Dushyant Chautala himself, and Amarjeet Dhanda. Other JJP MLAs, Ram Niwas Suraj Khera and Jogi Ram Singh, are facing disqualification issues.

The BJP, which won 40 seats in the 2019 Assembly elections and formed a government with the newly formed JJP, saw a change in government leadership in March. Nayab Singh Saini succeeded Manohar Lal Khattar, who is now a Union Minister. This shift in leadership followed the severing of ties between the BJP and JJP.

The political landscape in Haryana has been affected by the family feud within the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), leading to the formation of the JJP by Dushyant Chautala in 2018. The INLD, along with the JJP, traditionally relies on Jat votes, which make up 28% of the state’s population. However, this election is shaping up to be highly competitive, with Congress, led by prominent Jat leader and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, and BJP focusing on non-Jat votes.

The INLD’s patriarch, OP Chautala, who was released from prison in July 2021 after serving a sentence, continues to influence the party's efforts. As the BJP seeks a third consecutive term, the elections on October 1 will be closely watched, with results expected to be declared on October 4.

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