Hooda scion ready to inherit mantle with Congress’s ‘Haryana Mange Hisaab’
Bhartesh Singh Thakur/ Parveen Arora
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh/Karnal, July 15
With five-time MP Deepender Hooda launching the Congress’ Vidhan Sabha poll campaign ‘Haryana Mange Hisaab’ from Karnal today, the fourth-generation Hooda scion seems to be taking over the mantle from his father Bhupinder Singh Hooda, a two-time Chief Minister.
Will begin ‘rath yatra’ soon
Haryana Mange Hisaab’ campaign is an All India Congress Committee event. In coming days, I will start ‘rath yatra’ along with state president Udai Bhan and tour across the state. In between, we are holding various conventions, which I will be addressing. Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Ex-CM
Aimed at capitalising on anti-incumbency against the 10-year rule of Khattar-Saini, Deepender will visit 14 Assembly constituencies across nine districts in the first week as part of the campaign. Initially, the focus will be on the GT Road seats. Later, he plans to expand the campaign to all 90 Assembly constituencies of the state.
With senior Hooda at 77, it is perfect time for Deepender, 46, to take the centre stage. Acting as a force multiplier for his father, though much to the displeasure of their rivals within the party, Deepender has been a proxy for his father in Jat land. He gained prominence during byelection in Baroda and Adampur constituencies, with Congress winning the former and losing the latter.
The party’s Lok Sabha performance, achieving the highest vote share for the INDIA bloc nationwide at 47.61%, and securing victory in five out of 10 seats, has bolstered the father-son duo’s status within the Congress. Deepender’s vote percentage in Rohtak, at 62.76%, is second only to Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi from Rae Bareli (66.17%).
Besides consistently winning the family stronghold Rohtak four times (except in 2019 when he narrowly lost), Deepender has gained popularity among young voters for his advocacy on unemployment and issues raised both inside and outside Parliament.
With senior Hooda now having a free hand, as rivals such as Kiran Choudhry and Kuldeep Bishnoi having already left the party, the son’s ascendance within the party appears imminent. This sentiment was evident on the ground today, with placards in Karnal prominently featuring Deepender alongside state party president Udai Bhan and former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
In a symbolic gesture, Bhan handed over the party flag to Deepender to kickstart the ‘Haryana Mange Hisaab’ campaign. Under the campaign, Congress seeks answers to 15 questions from the ruling BJP, ranging from inflation and unemployment to law and order, drug trafficking, corruption scandals, and the farmers’ agitation.
Launching the campaign from Karnal city also holds political significance, as CM Nayab Singh Saini represents the constituency.
Before commencing his ‘padyatra’ (foot march) and addressing supporters, Deepender said, “The BJP was halved in the Lok Sabha and will now be wiped out in the Assembly.” Responding to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to Haryana, Deepender said, “We want to ask Home Minister Amit Shah why Haryana has become a hub for extortion and why this government has not taken action against gangsters.”
With CM Nayab Singh Saini mocking Congress as just a ‘baap-beta’ (father-son) party and rivals eagerly awaiting opportunity to hit back, the impact of this son-rise within the grand old party remains to be seen.
