Why Ahirwal belt is key for BJP in Haryana election matrix

With the Jats disenchanted with the BJP in Haryana, the party had significantly banked on the Ahirwal belt in the southern part of the state to form its governments in 2014 and 2019. This time too, despite a 10-year anti-incumbency, the Ahirwal region largely remained loyal to the BJP. Trends show the BJP tipped for its best-ever performance in the Ahirwal belt, spanning Gurgaon, Rewari and Mahendergarh.
Among the most prominent leaders of the Ahirwal region is Gurgaon BJP MP and Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh, who led the party’s campaign from the front and ensured that most of his loyalists received tickets, including his daughter Aarti Rao.
In the Lok Sabha polls, held just four months ago, the BJP dominated in 10 out of the 11 Assembly segments across Gurugram, Rohtak and Bhiwani-Mahendergarh.
But, why does the Ahirwal belt, mostly bordering Rajasthan, is significant?
The Ahirwal region in south Haryana consists of four Lok Sabha seats — Gurgaon, Rewari, Faridabad and Bhiwani-Mahendergarh. It translates to 28 Assembly seats out of the total 90 seats. More than 60 per cent of the voters reside in urban areas.
In 2014, the BJP won 15 seats. In the 2019 election, the BJP won 16 seats in the Ahirwal region even as its overall tally in Haryana dropped from 47 to 40.
The major factors in the Ahirwal belt are urban infrastructure, waterlogging in Gurugram, and civic woes.
During poll campaigning, the BJP went to the voters talking about the Congress’s lack of attention to the region when Bhupinder Singh Hooda was in power. The BJP accused the former Chief Minister of focusing only on his home turf of Rohtak, which is in the Jat belt.
It has also accused the Congress of undermining the prospects of south Haryana, mainly Gurugram, despite most of the state’s revenue coming from the region.