The political ecosystem in Haryana is currently abuzz with the entry of Vinesh Phogat in mainstream politics, who represented India at international arenas as a professional wrestler & brought numerous accolades and fame for the country. After announcing her retirement from wrestling in the aftermath of the Paris Olympics, Vinesh Phogat started a new journey by joining hands with the Indian National Congress to contest the Haryana Assembly Election as a candidate from Julana Constituency. Now the question that arises is whether Vinesh Phogat can turn the tables in favor of her party, which has the potential to dethrone the incumbent BJP government in Haryana?
The answer to this question is that Haryana as a whole needs a revival in their political dynamics ever since the state became an epicenter for farmer’s protests, unemployment, corruption, caste discrimination, etc. Considering the performance of both the BJP & Congress, the latter shocked the former with a decisive message from voters that they wanted a stable government that is ready to accept the grievances of people from all quarters of life and address the same through amicable measures.
With Vinesh Phogat contesting the election from the Julana Assembly Constituency, the stakes are high for Congress for 8 reasons:
1. The last time the Congress won from Julana was in 2005, and after 19 years, the Congress Party has a chance to get back this constituency from the JJP because of the popularity of Vinesh Phogat along with the defection of political leaders from JJP
2. The Jat factor can come into play, which can favor the Congress party in this election because the party has managed to increase the consolidated vote share of the Jats by 15 percent in the 2024 LS elections.
3. With the Jats playing a decisive role in influencing voting patterns, Julana, which is regarded as a traditional bastion for the Jat communities, can extend their wholehearted support for Vinesh Phogat/Congress as the BJP has been indulging in anti-dominant caste politics by ignoring a Jat face as a CM since they came to power in 2014.
4. Since 2019, the BJP has faced intense criticism from Jats because of protests by farmers wrestlers and anti-Agniveer demonstrations, which can leave a mark on the vote share of the BJP in the 2024 assembly elections as well.
5. The wrestler’s protest against former President of WFI and 6-time MP, Brij Bhusan Singh, over his alleged sexual harassment of several women wrestlers can be used as a weapon by Vinesh Phogat to corner the BJP for their failure in terms of guaranteeing safety and security for women.
6. The emotional and sympathy factor can help Vinesh Phogat to garner votes from traditional non-Congress supporters after whatever has happened with her when she got disqualified from the women’s wrestling final because of being overweight and losing the chance to bring a gold medal for India.
7. The shrinking vote share of INLD & JJP to 9 percent in LS Elections will benefit Congress to an extent as votes are likely to get divided between Congress & BJP, with political analysts feeling that Julana can expect Direct fight between BJP and Congress
8. The year-long farmers protest can have an electoral influence against the BJP as the region has plenty of farming communities who faced severe hardships and resistance by the state and central government to exercise their right to protest against the now repelled farm laws.
9. Unemployment among youths in Julana is a major concern, and Vinesh Phogat is likely to come down heavily on the BJP for failing to take measures to tackle rising unemployment, as Haryana in general has an unemployment rate of 37.4%, according to a study conducted by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE).
As of now, the political atmosphere says that the state can witness a tight electoral battle with national and regional parties competing against each other to secure an absolute majority, and Vinesh Phogat stands a chance to represent her constituency with a hope to resolve the problems of Julana constituency as well as Haryana.
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