When Manohar Lal Khattar was elected Haryana BJP legislature party chief after a resounding, and the party’s first, victory in the state last October, few had heard about the new chief minister designate. Ironically, the former RSS pracharak and first-time MLA was very familiar with the politics and personalities in the state in view of his grassroots level work over the years but he had preferred to keep a low profile.
Not many knew that he had remained closely associated with Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he was in-charge of party affairs in Haryana in the Nineties. Subsequently, Khattar worked in Bhuj as RSS’s representative for providing relief and rehabilitation for the earthquake victims in Gujarat.
The BJP had not projected any chief ministerial candidate in the Haryana assembly elections and the party’s campaign was conducted in the name of Modi who successfully led the party in the Lok sabha elections a few months ago. Thus there was no ‘natural choice’ to be the new chief minister.
The Indomitable CM
Among the contenders for the chief minister’s post were senior BJP leaders like Ram Bilas Sharma, Anil Vij and Capt Abhimanyu, who were the party’s known faces in the state. They staked claim for fighting the battles of the party over the years. However, they were left with no say when party chief Amit Shah indicated that Khattar would be the new chief minister.
Evidently not reconciled with having a ‘novice’ as their leader, some senior party functionaries like Sharma and Vij began to make their own moves. They initially wanted key portfolios and offices of their choice. Khattar too proved that he was not the one to be taken lightly and made sure that he was not taken for a ride.
With some advice from the party high command he ensured that his detractors were kept under a tight leash by attaching ‘tough’ officers of his choice with them, apparently to keep a close watch over their activities.
The Anti-CM Wave
It did not take too long for some of the dissidents to begin voicing their differences. Health Minister Vij, who was among the front runners for the CM’s post on the ground that he was a five-time legislator, began a Twitter campaign. At one stage he wrote that “some forces” were not letting him work. He was vocal over ‘interference’ in his department.
Finance Minister Capt Abhimanyu too threw tantrums while Education Minister Ram Bilas Sharma made little effort to hide his displeasure and dissatisfaction.
Sharma also took to Twitter to remark, “thank you chief minister for taking keen interest (sic) in my department.’’ He also objected to the posting of whistleblower IAS officer Ashok Khemka as transport commissioner under him and pressed successfully for his transfer out of his department.
Some other party leaders, including first-time MP from Karnal, Ashwini Kumar Chopra, have not been on the best of terms with the chief minister. He abstained from his constituency during visits of the chief minister and recently claimed that Khattar was surrounded by a “corrupt bureaucracy’’ and that he was not paying attention to his constituency.
Having The Bigwigs Support
The party high command has, however, continued to throw its weight behind Khattar who was patted by Modi when the prime minister launched the ‘beti bachao, beti padhayo’ campaign from Haryana.
Modi and Amit Shah have made it clear that they will fully back Khattar. After all they have been showcasing Haryana as a new model state and would like to replicate its electoral performance in other states too. The dissidents have been given a clear message but Khattar will have to take effective steps to stem dissension by taking everyone along.
(The writer is a veteran journalist based in Chandigarh.)
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