The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) delivered a resounding victory in Haryana’s municipal elections on Wednesday, with its mayoral candidates clinching seven of ten municipal corporations and leading in two others. The Congress, hoping to rebound from its 2024 Assembly poll defeat, faced yet another setback as the BJP tightened its grip across the state.
Elections for mayors and ward members in seven municipal corporations—Gurugram, Manesar, Faridabad, Hisar, Rohtak, Karnal, and Yamunanagar—along with bypolls in Ambala and Sonipat, took place on March 2. Panipat’s polling followed on March 9.
The BJP triumphed in Ambala, Faridabad, Gurugram, Hisar, Karnal, Rohtak, and Sonipat, defeating Congress rivals by significant margins, while its candidates held strong leads in Yamunanagar and Panipat. In Manesar’s debut election, Independent Inderjeet Yadav edged out BJP’s Sunder Lal by 2,293 votes.
Standout victories included Faridabad’s Parveen Joshi, who won by over 3 lakh votes, and Gurugram’s Raj Rani, securing a 1.79 lakh-vote margin. Sonipat’s Rajiv Jain, a senior BJP leader, and Karnal’s Renu Bala Gupta also emerged victorious.
Previously, BJP controlled eight of ten mayoral posts. Sonipat’s ex-mayor Nikhil Madaan (Congress-turned-BJP) and Ambala’s Shakti Rani Sharma (Haryana Janchetna Party-turned-BJP) had switched allegiance before winning Assembly seats in 2024.
The Haryana State Election Commission, alongside district administrations, ensured a seamless counting process. Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini hailed the results, predicting accelerated progress with a “triple-engine” government—BJP ruling at the Centre, state, and now civic levels.
The party’s robust grassroots machinery outshone Congress, which grappled with defections and internal discord ahead of the polls.
For Congress, the defeat underscores persistent organizational weaknesses, with no mayoral wins to show despite fielding candidates. The BJP’s dominance, even in Rohtak—a Congress stronghold—signals a shifting political tide, reinforcing its electoral prowess in Haryana as the opposition struggles to regroup.