JHAJJAR: Senior Congress leader and MP Deepender Singh Hooda launched a broadside against the BJP government during a meeting with party workers in Jhajjar, raising questions over education, development and the government’s Seva Sankalp Abhiyan.The meeting also saw Congress MLA Kuldeep Vats put forward a pointed suggestion on the party’s strategy for the next Assembly election — that tickets for sitting legislators should be determined primarily by their performance and report cards.Hooda visited Jhajjar on Friday and held interactions with Congress workers from Matanhail, Salhawas and the Jhajjar block. The discussions focused on the organisation, local issues and feedback from the grassroots.Taking aim at the BJP’s campaign launched around Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday, Hooda alleged that the programme had failed to generate the public participation claimed by the ruling party.He questioned the BJP’s claim of lighting 1.25 crore diyas across Haryana, alleging that the campaign’s visibility was largely confined to government buildings. He also referred to the response of young people to the programme.Hooda further said BJP ministers were repeatedly targeting him politically, but maintained that the people would respond at an appropriate time. He said Congress would continue to raise issues concerning the public.Education and development in Jhajjar also figured prominently in Hooda’s remarks. He alleged that the state’s education system was being weakened and questioned the government over the pace of development in the district.Hooda also criticised the policies of the BJP governments at the Centre and in Haryana, making allegations concerning democratic institutions, the Constitution and economic policy. His remarks on these issues formed part of the Congress leader’s political criticism of the government.The meeting also produced an internal political message from Congress MLA Kuldeep Vats. In the presence of Hooda, Vats said the party should consider an MLA’s performance, report card and connect with the electorate while deciding tickets for the next Assembly election.Vats argued that legislators who have remained consistently accessible to people in their constituencies, raised public issues and maintained a direct grassroots connect should be considered for another opportunity.At the same time, he said that legislators with an unsatisfactory performance record should not be given tickets again.The meeting brought together Congress workers and local leaders, including MLA Geeta Bhukkal and MLA Kuldeep Vats. Besides discussing the party organisation, the gathering provided a platform for leaders to raise local concerns and outline their expectations from the party’s future electoral strategy.While Hooda’s remarks centred largely on criticism of the BJP government and its policies, Vats’ intervention shifted attention to an equally significant question within the Congress — how the performance and public connect of sitting legislators should figure in ticket distribution.The meeting, therefore, combined the Congress’s attack on the ruling BJP with an internal discussion on organisational preparedness and the criteria that could shape its candidate selection for the next Assembly election
