Hooda Accuses BJP of Misleading Public on Women’s Quota, Farmer Crisis and Jobs
Opposition leader calls out ruling party over delimitation bill confusion, Mandi chaos and contractual worker terminations — and labels JJP and INLD as BJP’s ‘B-teams’
Former Haryana Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda launched a wide-ranging attack on the BJP government at a press conference in Chandigarh on Saturday, accusing it of deliberately misleading the public on issues ranging from women’s reservation to the farm procurement crisis and contractual employment.
Women’s Reservation Bill: Setting the Record Straight
Hooda was categorical in clarifying that the Women’s Reservation Bill was not a new legislative initiative — it had already been passed in the Lok Sabha on September 20, 2023, with a majority of 454 votes. He argued that the bill recently defeated in Parliament was not the Women’s Reservation Bill at all, but rather an amendment related to delimitation — one that he alleged was designed to redraw the country’s electoral map in the BJP’s favour ahead of the 2029 general elections.
“Had the BJP members truly been as pro-women as they claim, they would have implemented the bill back in 2023 itself,” Hooda said, accusing the ruling party of cynically linking reservation to delimitation in order to delay its implementation while scoring political points.
Farmer Distress: Mandis in Crisis
Turning to the farm sector, Hooda painted a grim picture of conditions in Haryana’s grain markets. He said procurement has nearly ground to a halt, with inadequate storage space inside mandis and a severe shortage of gunny bags for packaging produce. He noted that less than 20 percent of the harvested grain had been lifted so far, and that farmers were facing payment delays of eight to ten days.
Frustration among farmers has reached a breaking point, he said, with smaller mandis in Beri, Dubaldhan, Meham, Sanghi, and Kalai being locked in protest. Hooda accused the government of using pretexts such as moisture content, grain discolouration, and registration irregularities to avoid paying the Minimum Support Price.
He also took aim at the Agriculture Minister, who had reportedly suggested that recent unseasonal rains were beneficial for farmers. “A person holding such a responsible position should not make such irresponsible remarks,” Hooda said, adding that during his own tours of mandis across the state, not a single farmer expressed satisfaction with the government’s handling of the situation.
HKRN Workers: A Policy Betrayal
On the issue of contractual workers employed under the Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam (HKRN), Hooda reminded the audience that the Congress government had passed a proposal to regularise temporary employees as far back as 2014 — a move the BJP kept stalled for over a decade. He said even the Supreme Court had now ruled in favour of the Congress policy.
Despite this, he alleged, the BJP government continues to terminate HKRN employees it had itself appointed, while failing to launch fresh recruitment drives. He added that when vacancies do arise for major government positions, 90 percent are being filled by candidates from outside the state.
Sharp Words on Political Rivals
Hooda dismissed both the JJP and INLD as the BJP’s “B-teams,” claiming they operate entirely at the ruling party’s direction. He made the remarks in response to a question, declining to engage further with them as credible opposition forces.
On internal party matters, Hooda announced that Congress would contest the upcoming municipal corporation elections under its own symbol, with a final decision on the mayoral elections expected from a party meeting later in the day. He also served notice on party discipline, warning that those involved in cross-voting had betrayed both the party and their electorate, and should resign and seek a fresh mandate.
Senior Congress leaders including MLAs B.B. Batra, Subhash Batra, Sant Kumar, and Chakravarti Sharma, along with former Minister Anand Singh Dangi, Urban President Kuldeep KD, and Balwan Ranga were present at the press conference.
