Dera hand in BJP’s remarkable victory
The BJP’s third remarkable win in Haryana, it seems, is also due to the behind-the-scenes support given by Dera Sacha Sauda, based in Sirsa.
Just three days before the elections, on October 2, dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim was granted parole. He arrived at his ashram in Uttar Pradesh on October 3. He never delivered any public speeches but messages sent to his thousands of followers are said to have contributed to galvanising the BJP.
In the week leading up to Ram Rahim’s parole, dera followers began conducting gatherings across districts, attracting large crowds. After the parole, on October 3, these followers organised more significant events and openly urged their community to support the BJP. They were instructed to support BJP candidates and assist Independent candidates where the BJP was weaker, avoiding any support for Congress candidates.
In Sirsa district, the dera backed non-BJP candidates in four constituencies — Aditya Chautala in Dabwali, Arjun Chautala in Rania, Abhay Chautala from the INLD-BSP in Ellenabad and INLD-BSP-HLP-backed Gopal Kanda in Sirsa. Among them, Aditya Chautala and Arjun Chautala won their seats.
After his victory in Dabwali, Aditya expressed gratitude to the dera followers for their support during a media interaction. Following this, he visited the Dera Sacha Sauda branch in Dabwali and thanked the people there personally.
The dera has a substantial influence across more than 20 Assembly seats in regions such as Sirsa, Fatehabad, Hisar, Kaithal and Ambala. Although dera supporters backed BJP candidates in three seats in Fatehabad, none won due to farmers’ protests.
