Vishal Joshi

Caste combinations and permutations, which have been a deciding factor in the past many polls to the Kurukshetra parliamentary seat, is expected to again play a central role in the 2019 General Election.

The constituency came into being in 1977 as before this, it was part of the Kaithal seat. Since its inception, the Kurukshetra Lok Sabha has elected candidates from the Saini community on five out of 11 occasions.

Incumbent MP Raj Kumar Saini was elected on the BJP ticket. A party hopper, Saini had won by a significant margin of 1.29 lakh votes.

Industrialist-turned-politician Naveen Jindal, who had represented Kurukshetra for two consecutive terms in 2004 and 2009, had finished poorly third in the last elections.

Saini turned rebel after the violent Jat agitation in February 2016 and launched his Loktantra Suraksha Party last year. Saini’s LSP fielded Vinod Kumar Ashri against the BJP in the recent Jind bypoll, who stood fourth with over 13,000 votes.

However, a cross-section of voters in urban and rural areas say the transparent functioning of the BJP government led by Manohar Lal Khattar will be important factor in the polls.

Mayank Sethi, a car accessory dealer, said GST had significantly reduced the paperwork. “The BJP may gain as there is no credible political alternative,” he added.

A resident of Mirzapur village, Jaimal Singh says fair recruitment in various government departments by the Haryana BJP government has earned people’s praise.

“A daily wager’s son from our village was recently appointed SDO. This has never happened in the past, as jobs during the previous regimes would either be sold for money or to those close to the ruling clique,” fellow villagers said in unison.

A farmer, Suresh Kumar, said the Central government’s decision to grant financial support of Rs 6,000 was laudable.

“It is easier to criticise the government’s decision by saying that it is not enough. But the fact is that no government in the past has even thought of extending any support to farmers,” Kumar added.

Traffic congestion and the scrapping of the Dadupur Nalvi canal project are among the key issues that dominate the urban and rural segments, respectively. Ashok Aggarwal, a resident of Sector 3, said, “Anarchy rules on city roads as traffic management seems to be the last priority.”

“The Central and state governments have been claiming to make Kurukshetra a destination for international tourists, but nothing has been done in the past four years to improve the traffic management system. Non-functional traffic lights add to woes,” he added.

Gurnam Singh Charuni, president of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Haryana), says BJP MP Saini failed to push the Dadupur Nalvi project.

“Several parts of the constituency have been declared dark zone due to depleting underground water table and new tubewell connections are not allowed in the area. Since Kurukshetra and Kaithal are paddy-growing districts, the canal project would have been a boon for the farmers,” said Charuni.

For Ramesh Kumar Hooda, 10 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections was a welcome move. “Be it reservation or granting financial support, only economic condition should be the criteria for beneficiaries,” he adds.

Hari Kishan of Lohar Majra village cultivates two acres on lease and he says the government should raise the MSP of various crops. “Farmers are being benefitted from the crop insurance scheme,” he adds.

Meanwhile, present incumbent Saini is indecisive on contesting the polls. Kurukshetra has a sizeable number of voters from the Saini and Sikh communities and caste combination will play a pivotal role in the elections.

Key players

| BJP: Nayab S Saini, Jai Bhagwan aka Rocky Mittal | Cong: Naveen Jindal and Kailasho Saini | INLD: Ashok Arora, Kailash Bhagat & Santosh Dahiya | LSP-BSP: Not decided | JJP: Jai Bhagwan aka DD Sharma

ASSEMBLY SEGMENTS

There are nine Assembly segments in Kurukshetra, Kaithal and part of Yamunanagar districts. They are Radaur, Ladwa, Shahbad (SC), Thanesar, Pehowa, Guhla (SC), Kalayat, Kaithal and Pundri.

Riding high on the Modi wave, BJP’s Saini had won the Kurukshetra Parliamentary seat, trouncing his nearest rival Balbir Singh Saini of INLD by 1.29 lakh votes. Two-time former Congress Member of Parliament and industrialist Naveen Jindal had finished third in the 2014 General Election.

Total voters

16,08,036

Male

8,56,202

Female

7,51,834