Keen to revive INLD, lone legislator Abhay Chautala embarks on 219-day padyatra in Haryana

In this scenario, the INLD leaders may try to connect with the new voters to create a bonding with them. “This bonding may further create a strong base at the grassroots just like Devi Lal undertook a padyatra in 1985. Then in 1987 elections, the Lok Dal (now INLD) had won 85 of total 90 assembly seats in the state,” says Rakesh Sihag, an INLD leader.

To start its padyatra, the INLD has chosen the Mewat area which was once a stronghold of the INLD. Although a lion’s share of the INLD’s support base had gone to the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) of Dushyant Chautala in 2019 assembly polls, still the INLD leadership has hopes that the cadre may return to it to a great extent in coming years. In support of its arguments, the INLD leaders cite the farmer agitation of 2020-21 in which the JJP had faced the agitators’ wrath for not coming out in their support “actively”.

Abhay Chautala is undertaking his padyatra at a time when senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi succeeded to grab the attention of the political circles during his “Bharat Jodo Yatra”. Not only this, an independent legislator from Haryana’s Meham constituency, Balraj Kundu, also recently completed a 24-day-long padyatra covering 680 km in 10 districts of the state.

INLD’s complete revival would be a challenging task for Abhay Chautala at this stage, especially after the Congress gave a “free-hand” to former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda for Haryana affairs in the state’s caste-centric politics.

Still, Abhay Chautala (60) has been insisting that the revival of INLD is certain. “We have seen ups and downs many times in our political journey. The people don’t have confidence in the current BJP-JJP government as the alliance has failed to deliver on its poll promises. The BJP was responsible for the split in the INLD which has angered the people. Our efforts to raise the issues of common man will be instrumental in our revival,” Abhay Chautala had told The Indian Express earlier.