Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) national president Amit Shah reached Haryana’s Rohtak on Wednesday as part of a three-day visit to review the working of the State government, which completed 1,000 days last month. He will also assess the political situation in Haryana.
Mr. Shah, who was received by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, his Cabinet colleagues and senior party office-bearers at Bahadurgarh on the Delhi-Haryana border, is slated to hold discussions with party functionaries, Cabinet ministers, party MLAs and MPs, board chairmen, former MLAs and MPs, and workers in a series of meetings.
Also, Mr. Shah is scheduled to have lunch at the house of one of the party’s Dalit workers before he returns to Delhi on Friday evening.
Part of nation-wide tour
Haryana BJP spokesperson Raman Malik said that Mr. Shah had come to Rohtak as part of his 100-odd day nation-wide tour to strengthen the party. As part of this visit, he is expected to take stock of the political situation in Haryana and decide on a future course of action to help the State government perform better. “The Cabinet ministers will give presentations on the performance of their departments while Mr. Shah will take feedback from the chairmen of various boards,” said Mr. Malik.
About the possibility of any leader from rival political parties joining the BJP during Mr. Shah’s stay in Rohtak, Mr. Malik said that all those who wanted to join the saffron camp were welcome.
The visit assumes political significance as Rohtak has been the traditional stronghold of former Haryana Chief Minister and Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
Besides the lone Congress MP Deepender Hooda, majority of the 15 Congress MLAs in the current Haryana Assembly are also from the Rohtak-Sonipat belt.
“The political headquarters of our party are in Rohtak. We saw a sweeping victory in Haryana, but this belt was held by the Congress. The party believes that this place also deserves good representatives,” said Mr. Malik.
Congress fumes
Haryana Congress spokesperson Ran Singh Maan, however, accused the BJP of blatantly misusing the administration for a party function. “The entire State administration is busy preparing for the visit of the BJP president; it is an undeclared holiday at the Chandigarh secretariat with all senior officers in Rohtak,” said Mr. Maan, ruling out any defection in his party.
“Our workers and leaders are eyeing a victory in the upcoming Assembly elections and cannot be lured by the BJP,” said he said.