How Haryana BJP is looking to make itself ‘Congress-proof’

At the district level, the state BJP leadership formed similar panels comprising three or four members including the district party president and district in-charge.

A senior BJP leader said the party’s primary concern is to “preserve its ideological character”. “We do not want the BJP to lose its identity and undergo Congressisation,” the leader said, pointing out that unlike Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan, the party’s rise in Haryana was not built solely on its organisational strength.

“Leaders from the Congress, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) and the Haryana Vikas Party played a role in our growth. While those who win elections on BJP ticket cannot be termed outsiders, it is equally true that power cannot be entirely handed over to new entrants. A fine balance is needed,” the BJP leader said.

At a BJP event in its headquarters in Delhi on January 20, when Nitin Nabin took charge as the new party national president, PM Modi, while congratulating Nabin, said: “Jo Congress ki burayiyon se bachega wahi desh mein aage badhega (Only those who save themselves from the ills of the Congress, will progress).”

Mohan Lal Badoli’s announcement coincided with the crossover of Ishwar Singh, former chairman of the National Scheduled Caste Commission and ex-Rajya Sabha MP, to the BJP from the Congress. His move is being seen as one of the most significant induction into the state BJP in nearly a year, following Congress leader Sardar Trilochan Singh’s switch to the BJP in February 2025, ahead of the municipal polls.

Trilochan Singh had contested the 2024 Karnal bypoll against Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on a Congress ticket, which was necessitated by the resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar, who later won the Karnal Lok Sabha seat and is currently a Union minister.

Explaining the rationale behind the screening panels, the BJP’s Haryana in-charge Satish Poonia said that some individuals often seek entry into the party purely for “personal political gains” that trigger objections from party workers. “These screening committees will discuss with all stakeholders, assess the intent of aspirants, and ensure that new entrants strengthen the party. Only then will their applications for entry be forwarded to the senior leadership for clearance,” he said, adding that the mechanism would bring uniformity and prevent “casual” inductions without scrutiny.

The principal Opposition Congress, however, dismissed the move as “inconsequential”. Former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda said the exercise made little sense in a small state like Haryana. “If someone is important, everyone already knows the leader. Has the BJP ever refused entry to anyone? They are welcoming leaders from the Congress, INLD and everywhere else,” he said.

The BJP too has seen its share of exits. Veteran Congress leader and former Union minister Birender Singh and his son Brijendra Singh, a BJP MP from Hisar, quit the party and returned to Congress ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Ahead of the October 2024 Assembly elections, former Lok Sabha MP and Dalit leader Ashok Tanwar and former Haryana minister Karan Dev Kamboj also left the BJP for Congress.

Despite the Congress winning 37 seats in the 90-member Assembly with a vote share of 39.09% — marginally behind the BJP’s 39.94% — it failed to reclaim power. The BJP secured its third consecutive victory winning 48 seats, dealing a severe blow to the Congress yet again.