Congress remained aggressive in the Haryana Assembly even without a Leader of the Opposition. Hooda played the opposition role, but the BJP highlighted internal Congress disagreements.
Haryana News: The Congress party displayed an aggressive stance during the Haryana Assembly's budget session. However, the party's biggest challenge was the absence of a Leader of the Legislative Party. Congress MLAs repeatedly urged the high command to appoint a leader, but their requests were ignored. Despite this, former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda effectively filled the role of the Leader of the Opposition, consistently responding to the ruling party.
The Ruling Party's Jabs
While ruling party ministers and Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini addressed Hooda as the Leader of the Opposition, the BJP repeatedly questioned Congress's failure to appoint a Leader of the Legislative Party. Throughout the Assembly proceedings, the ruling party repeatedly attempted to highlight this Congress weakness.
Aggressive Congress MLAs
During the budget session, 23 out of 38 Congress MLAs actively participated. Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Ashok Arora, Raghubeer Kadian, Geeta Bhukkal, Aftab Ahmed, Jassie Petwad, Shakuntala Khatak, Mohammad Ilyas, and BB Batra maintained an aggressive stance throughout the session. Notably, even during Ramadan, Aftab Ahmed and several other Muslim MLAs remained active in the Assembly, posing sharp questions to the government.
Congress High Command's Priorities?
Haryana Congress in-charge, BK Hariprasad, visited Chandigarh twice during the Assembly session. Congress MLAs met with him, demanding the appointment of a Leader of the Legislative Party. However, Hariprasad clarified that the Congress high command's priority was currently strengthening the party organization, not appointing a Leader of the Legislative Party.
Internal Opposition Against Hooda
Sources suggest that some Congress MLAs are lobbying for themselves, while senior leaders like Kumari Selja and Randeep Surjewala are reportedly strategizing against Hooda. Hooda, aware of this internal politics, remains silent, seemingly unwilling to let party infighting become public.
BJP's Taunts and Congress's Strategy
Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini sarcastically remarked in the Assembly that he considered Bhupinder Singh Hooda the Leader of the Opposition, questioning why Congress wasn't officially assigning him the responsibility. This prompted an uproar from Congress MLAs, but they failed to provide a substantial response to the BJP's jibe.
Congress's Strength Without a Leader?
This is the second time Congress has participated in an Assembly session without a Leader of the Legislative Party. The party also lacked a Leader of the Opposition during the winter session. The question now arises: will a Leader of the Legislative Party be appointed before the Congress party reorganization is complete?
