The state of civic facilities in Haryana’s millennium city Gurugram is very poor and could spell trouble for the BJP. There are only 20 days left for the elections. The BJP has been dominant in Gurugram for the past decade, winning three consecutive assembly elections since 2014. However, the declining level of civic facilities in Gurugram in recent years has made the city, popularly known as the ‘Millennium City’, a target for hooligan attacks. City residents have been complaining about the poor facilities.
Gurgaon is considered as a corporate hub.
Gurgaon is known as a corporate hub and is important to the political class. Its importance is heightened especially due to its proximity to the national capital. The Gurgaon Lok Sabha constituency consists of four assembly seats: Gurgaon, Badshapur, Sohna and Pataudi. In the 2019 assembly elections, the BJP won three of these seats, while independent candidate Rakesh Daulatabad from Badshapur won. In the Gurgaon seat, BJP’s Sudhir Singla defeated his nearest rival by more than 32,000 votes, while the Congress candidate came third.
Congress has given ticket to Mohit Grover
In the 2014 elections, BJP candidate Umesh Agarwal won the seat. INLD’s Gopi Chand Gehlot came second, Congress candidate Dharambir Gaba third and independent candidate Sukhbir Kataria fourth. This time, the Congress has given the ticket of Gurgaon to Mohit Grover, who had bagged around 50,000 votes as an independent candidate in 2019 and finished second. After the nomination, Mohit Grover took a dig at the BJP and said, “BJP’s promises disappear with every drop of rain.” Meanwhile, the BJP has named Mahesh Sharma from Gurgaon as its candidate this time.
Waterlogging becomes a problem
Waterlogging and traffic congestion in the city have proven to be the biggest challenge for the BJP. Monsoon waterlogging in Gurgaon is plaguing the masses. Due to recent heavy rains, waterlogging and traffic congestion have occurred in many places including Hero Honda Chowk, Rajiv Chowk, IFFCO Chowk. Traffic on the Delhi-Gurugram Expressway remains slow for up to three kilometers. Even in the posh areas of the city, waterlogging and traffic conditions remain severe.
Traffic jams continued till late in the night due to waterlogging at Sadar Chowk, Gurudwara Road and Old Delhi Road in Old Gurugram. On social media, people even referred to Gurugram as “Jalgram”. Political commentator Suhail Seth has also repeatedly drawn attention to the civic facilities in Gurugram. In a tweet, he asked the Haryana Chief Minister: “Are you ashamed or should we wait?”
The opposition continues to criticize
GL Sharma, former vice-president of the BJP, who recently returned to the Congress party, also criticized the BJP, saying: “The BJP leaders themselves admitted on nomination day that the city has become a garbage dump. The sewers in the colonies are overflowing. Drinking water is mixed with sewer water and there is a lack of basic facilities.” The construction of the Shishamata temple in the city also took more than 10 years. GL Sharma said: “The biggest corruption center in Gurgaon is MCG and GMDA. A budget of 10,000 crore has disappeared. If it has been spent, why is the city in such a bad state?”
Garbage dump in the city
Sandeep Phogat, president of Green Land Apartments Association in Gurgaon, said, “10 years of BJP government have proved useless for Gurgaon. There has been no garbage collection in the city for many months due to a strike by sanitation workers. The BJP and its local leaders are working hard to address the problem. “I have completely failed in the development of civic facilities in Gurgaon.” Meanwhile, Kamal Yadav, BJP leader and Gurgaon zone president, said, “Gurgaon is a growing city and needs constant maintenance. The government is addressing these issues.” Now, it will be interesting to see whether the BJP will be able to retain its old seats in these elections or the lack of civic facilities will be a big loss for the party this time.
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