Haryana polls: Dera Sacha Sauda extended support to BJP on 90 state assembly seats

SIRSA: It couldn’t have come at a better moment for the BJP. Just as Haryana gets ready to vote, the influential religious sect, Dera Sacha Sauda, on Monday extended support to the saffron party on all the 90 assembly seats in the state.

The support comes a few days after PM Narendra Modi applauded chief of the Sirsa-based sect. A few weeks ago, BJP’s political affairs incharge for Haryana, Kailash Vijayvargia, had also led a team of 40-candidates to seek blessings of Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim.

The dera support is likely to be crucial for the BJP in the multi-cornered contest. The dera, known for pro-dalit stance, claims over sixmillion registered followers in Haryana mainly in districts like Sirsa, Hisar, Fatehabad, Karnal, Kaithal, Ambala and Bhiwani.

“The decision would gain dalit votes for the BJP. In the past, the votes have gone to Congress and the INLD in Haryana,” a BJP leader said. But the main opposition party, INLD, doesn’t see Dera hurting its prospects. “It is entirely loss of Congress,” says former bureaucrat and INLD general secretary RS Chaudhary. “Dera had supported Congress in 2009 assembly polls and also in recent parliamentary polls,” he claims. But it exposes the real face of the so-called secular parties like BJP and Congress. It shows that Modi wave has weaned,” Choudhary added.

Dera Saccha Sauda had made a similar announcement in 2007 in favour of the Congress in Punjab. The Congress, led by captain Amarinder Singh, had lost the polls but the party won seats in constituencies that had concentration of Dera followers.

Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party has complained against the BJP for violation of the Election Code by seeking the support of Dera. “It is violation of model code as the BJP has sought votes linking politics with religion,” AAP’s Haryana spokesperson, Rajeev Godara, said.

Godara alleged BJP has publically sought support from the Dera chief who faces grave charges of murder and rapes.