BJP breaks up with INLD in Haryana

 The BJP on Monday severed its alliance with Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), which is led by former chief minister Om Prakash Chautala. The party would go it alone in the forthcoming Assembly election, said senior BJP leader Vijay Goel, who is in charge of Haryana. The state is likely to go to the polls in October.

Though the immediate cause of the break-up was stated to be the failure of the two parties to arrive at an understanding on seat sharing, fissures between the two had been building since the alliance performed dismally in the Lok Sabha election. It lost all 10 seats.

Since then, the INLD has since been losing senior party leaders who were no longer happy with Chautala, and the BJP was uncomfortable about carrying on with a sinking ship.

Soon after the Lok Sabha defeat, the BJP replaced state president Atma Prakash Manchanda with Chautala-baiter  Krishan Pal Gujar and party leaders felt that the only way to salvage their position in Haryana was to go alone in the state polls.

The seat-sharing broke down after BJP demanded 45 seats in the 90-member House. Indications that the party would sever ties with INLD had come last month when two-member teams were sent to each district to identify candidates within two days. The process was completed on August 19, the day the chintan baithak began.