Congress won Gharaunda seat four times, but hasn’t tasted success in 3 decades

Tribune News Service

Karnal, August 29

The Gharaunda Assembly segment has a diverse political history, with almost all major political parties having represented the constituency at different times. The Congress has won the seat the most, securing victory four times. However, despite its early dominance, the party has been unable to reclaim the seat for the past 33 years, with its last victory in 1991. The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have each won the seat three times. Besides, Bharatiya Jana Sangh, Janata Party, and Lok Dal have each claimed the seat once.

The Congress won the seat in 1967, 1972, 1982, and 1991, when its candidates M Chand, Rulya Ram, Vedpal and Rampal Singh, secured victory, respectively, indicating the party’s strong base in the region during these years.

The Bharatiya Jana Sangh made an early mark by winning in 1968 when its candidate Randhir Singh secured victory, while the Janata Party capitalised on the anti-emergency sentiment and won in 1977 when its candidate Rampal Singh won the seat.

The Lok Dal showed its presence with a victory in 1987 when its candidate Piru Ram won the seat. Later in 1996, the BJP won for the first time from this seat as its candidate Ramesh Kashyap secured victory. The INLD won the seat for three consecutive times with its candidates Ramesh Rana, Rekha Rana and Narender Sangwan in 2000, 2005 and 2009, respectively.

With the Narendra Modi wave, the BJP won the seat in 2014 and later it again won the seat in 2019. Party candidate Harvinder Kalyan won the seat two consecutive times.

In the 2019 election, Harvinder Kalyan won by a margin of 17,402 votes, receiving 67,209 votes, while Congress candidate Anil Kumar got 49,807 votes. With consecutive victories in 2014 and 2019, the BJP has established itself as the dominant force in Gharaunda, while the Congress continues to struggle. Sitting MLA Harvinder Kalyan and former BJP state general secretary Advocate Vedpal are among the ticket aspirants for the BJP while the Congress has a longer list of contenders. This includes AICC Secretary Virender Rathore, former MLA Narendra Sangwan, Anil Rana, Bhupinder Singh Lather, Satish Rana, among others.

Political experts believe that the Congress must present a united front to stand a chance at victory. “This election is crucial for all political parties. The Congress needs to work hard to reclaim this seat after a gap of 33 years by presenting a united face and effectively communicating its policies to the public. BJP leaders, on the other hand, must address any anti-incumbency sentiments in the segment,” said Dr Kushal Pal, a political expert .