Had no choice but to back BJP in 2019: Dushyant Chautala

Addressing a rally held at Jind in Haryana on Sunday, December 7, 2025, to celebrate the eighth foundation day of the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), former Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala said he had no option but to form an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2019 to avoid a split in his party. He added that those who see his party as a threat are trying to label this move as a “conspiracy”.

Saying that he would prefer to speak from the heart instead of giving a speech on the foundation day, Mr. Chautala asked the audience to find out if they really had any option other than supporting the BJP. “BJP has been in power at the Center for the last 11 years. You know how it runs the government. Do you think we have any other option?” asked Mr. Chautala, adding that seven of the 10 MLAs who quit the party before the Assembly elections last year would have left the party earlier if they had not supported the BJP government.

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“We would lose our symbol and the party would be over,” Mr. Chauala joked.

The JJP, which had backed the BJP to form the government in 2019, has come up blank in the 2024 Assembly poll, facing ire from its core voters for its “anti-farmer” stance and support for the BJP government during the year-long uproar against the Centre’s now withdrawn farm laws.

Mr. Chautala said he supported the BJP to fulfill promises made to the people and kept the doors open for them in Chandigarh during its four-and-a-half-year rule. Raising the issue of farmers’ agitation, he added that even if he left the State government, the government could continue with the support of seven Independent MLAs.

Mr Chautala said his party was also open to supporting the Congress but they did not have the numbers. Alleging that the BJP returned to power through “fix-fixing”, he said, “Ups and downs are a part of politics. Chaudhary Devi Lal remained in power for just over six years in her six-decade political career. The politics of togetherness gave weight to our field politics.”

JJP national president Ajay Singh Chautala harshly criticized both the BJP and the Congress, stating that the Congress was responsible for ensuring the formation of the BJP government in Haryana. Addressing the crowd, he said Congress leaders had bankrupted their own party by colluding with the BJP and now the BJP was busy exploiting the state.

Dr. Chautala said Haryana today is witnessing a “jungle raj” where theft, robbery, loot and murder have become routine. Questioning the government’s claims, he said: “If this is the state of law and order, who will guarantee the safety of Haryana’s people?”

He accused the BJP government of being anti-farmer and said farmers did not even bear the cost of cultivation. He emphasized that months after the flood, thousands of acres of land remained under water without receiving help, and the government could not even manage to drain the water in many areas. He also said that despite spending billions during the Prime Minister’s last visit to Haryana, “the Prime Minister has not announced even a single rupee for the development of the state.”