New Delhi: Rao Inderjit Singh is flexing muscles ahead of assembly polls in Haryana from projecting himself as contender for Chief Ministerial post to coming out in support of Ram Bilas Sharma, after he denied assembly ticket.
Hailing from the royal family of Ahirwal kingdom comprising several districts of south Haryana, Inderjit got a ticket for his daughter Arti Rao from Ateli this time without much effort.
Last time the BJP had denied ticket to her despite Inderjit’s efforts.GT road and Ahirwal region have been the main catchment areas for BJP to come to power in Haryana.
And now after farmers protest, opposition to Agniveer scheme and protests by wrestlers, the BJP finding it difficult to make inroads in Jat dominated Deswali, Bagar and Bangar regions of Haryana.
Perhaps that was the region – Inderjit was given special appreciation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in run up to Lok Sabha polls and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in run up to assembly polls in Haryana.A section of BJP’s Haryana unit claims that he was in touch with Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and the saffron party didn’t want him to leave.Sensing that he is becoming more relevant for the party, Inderjit is making moves by wielding his weight – first he projected himself as CM contender and openly supported Ram Bilas Sharma after BJP leadership denied him the ticket.
Recently addressing a gathering in Rewari, Inderjit said “It’s the people who want to see me as chief minister. They have given their verdict through elections. Right now, Nayab Saini’s kite is flying high in the sky.”
Singh made these remarks even though BJP top brass has announced Saini as its CM face for Haryana assembly polls.
In a similar fashion, he openly came out in support of Sharma after he was denied ticket from Mahendergarh saying that this is not the appropriate way as Sharma raised the BJP in Haryana. He also said the party should consider him for Governor post.
Inderjit supporters claim that the BJP has fielded several candidates on around twenty seats on his recommendation and even denied tickets to some of its leaders like Santosh Yadav. She was seeking a ticket from Ateli from where Inderjit’s daughter is contesting.
The party even changed the seats of some of the sitting MLAs on his recommendation, his supporters claim.
Despite the efforts to keep him in good humor, the BJP has given tickets to several leaders not to the liking of Inderjit including Rao Narbir Singh from Badshahpur.
Many in the BJP see Inderjit becoming more relevant for the party as he is seen as the tallest Ahir leader with the potential to carry caste votes with him.
But there are many disputes citing the recent Lok Sabha results, where his victory margin came down substantially and Ahirs are looking for a new leader.
BJP has also made special efforts to consolidate its standing among OBCs in the state including Ahirs.
Inderjit at times makes it clear that ideologically he has not fully subscribed to BJP-RSS ideology. He took a different stand from the party at the time of violence in Nuh in 2023 after a yatra carried by VHP in the muslim dominated region.
Inderjit has enjoyed four stints as Union Minister – two during Congress rule and two under the Modi government but his heart lies in state politics.
However, his relevance is still limited to the Ahirwal region.
With passing time and changing political landscape, Ahirwal is also looking for a next generation leader and therefore Inderjit is trying to shift his legacy to his daughter Arti.