Jai Prakash ends Congress dry run in Hisar

Deepender Deswal

Hisar, June 4

Ending the two-decade-old dry run of the Congress, party candidate Jai Prakash has defeated BJP’s Ranjit Singh by a margin of 63,381 from the Hisar Lok Sabha constituency. Jai Prakash registered his fourth victory from the Hisar Lok Sabha seat.

An old political warhorse, former Union Minister Jai Prakash, who is also popularly known as JP, won from Hisar in 1989 on the Janata Dal ticket. In 1996, he made it to Parliament on the HVP ticket, while in 2004, the Congress fielded him from Hisar and he won the Lok Sabha elections. He had also suffered defeats in 1991, 1998, 2009 and 2011 (byelection).

He ran his campaign in the name of former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda as no senior leader of the Congress campaigned for him in the Hisar constituency. But, during the campaigning, he received support from former Chief Minister Hooda and his son Deepender Hooda.

After 2004, former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal, who parted ways with the Congress, wrested the seat from the Congress in 2009. In 2014, Chaudhary Devi Lal’s great-grandson Dushyant Chautala made a successful political debut by winning the seat for the INLD. The BJP also opened its account when IAS-turned-politician Brijendra Singh won his first Lok Sabha elections from Hisar in 2019.

The Congress had lost security deposits in four elections (including byelection held in 2011 after the death of Bhajan Lal).

A loyalist of the former Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda, the 70-year-old new Hisar MP was contesting the elections against three members of the Chautala clan – Ranjit Singh of the BJP, and JJP’s Naina Chautala and INLD’s Sunaina Chautala. All four candidates had claimed to be the political successors of former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal.

Ramandeep Singh, a farmer activist, said farmers have been at the forefront to oppose the BJP and JJP candidates during the campaign. They also asked questions to candidates.

“More than the Congress own campaign, it was resentment among farmers for the BJP and JJP, which helped the Congress win from Hisar,” he said, adding that there were 10 villages where the BJP candidate was not allowed to enter during the campaigning. He said JJP leaders also faced protests.

Political analyst ML Goyal, who is also a retired political science professor, said the farmers’ agitation set the tone for the Congress in the region, which comprises seven Assembly segments of Hisar district, and one each from Jind and Bhiwani districts.

Defeats BJP’s Ranjit Singh by 63,381 votes

• Congress’ candidate Jai Prakash defeated BJP’s Ranjit Singh by a margin of 63,381 from the Hisar Lok Sabha constituency. An old political warhorse, former Union Minister Jai Prakash, who is also popularly known as JP, won from Hisar in 1989 on the Janata Dal ticket.
• In 1996, he won on the HVP ticket, while in 2004, he reached Lok Sabha on the Congress ticket. He unsuccessfully contested in 1991, 1998, 2009 and 2011 (bypoll).
• During the campaigning, he received support from former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and his son Deepender Hooda, who won from Rohtak . However, no senior party leader campained for him.