New Delhi: For many months, speculation was rife that several Congress leaders from Uttarakhand who had left the party ahead of the 2017 assembly elections to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would return. And that script has played out, with senior leaders like Yashpal Arya and now Harak Singh Rawat breaking ranks with the ruling BJP.But the question is, while these leaders were able to assist the BJP in forming a government in 2017, can they repeat the trick again?Congress in churn since Rawat’s return from Punjab roleEver since former chief minister Harish Rawat completed his role as in-charge of the Congress in Punjab – where the party replaced Amarinder Singh with Charanjit Singh Channi as chief minister – and returned to focus on the politics of Uttarakhand, there has been a churn.The first to return to the Congress was former Uttarakhand minister and six-term MLA Yashpal Arya, along with his son, Nainital MLA Sanjiv, in October. On his return, the senior Arya indicated that more leaders from the BJP were prepared to jump ship. Arya is from the Dalit community and there was some speculation that the Congress might project him to be its chief ministerial candidate – repeating the decision to elevate Channi. But nothing to that effect has happened thus far.Leader of the opposition and senior Congress leader Pritam Singh had then indicated that the party would keep its doors open for all those leaders who had left in 2016-17. He claimed that desertion of and return to a party were “commonplace” in a democracy.Incidentally, nine Congress leaders had deserted the party and joined the BJP in 2016. The group was led by former chief minister Vijay Bahuguna and included Harak Singh Rawat, who was a minister in the Harish Rawat-led Congress government. The seven other legislators were Amruta Rawat, Shailendra Mohan, Kunwar Pranav Singh, Subodh Uniyal, Pradeep Batra, Shaila Rani Rawat and Umesh Sharma.Congress treating each offer of return on its meritFollowing Arya’s return to the Congress, Harish Rawat had indicated that the party would be open to others returning – but onlu on merit. “Elections are the ultimate test (of political leaders). We will vet the person based on how they can help our organisation in the elections,” he said.After this statement, speculation around the return of other former Congress leaders to the party had increased. Bahuguna had then tried to project a picture of unity within the BJP, saying legislators were not disgruntled.But in December, chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami complained to the party high command about Harak Singh Rawat’s “haughty attitude” in party meetings after he walked out of a cabinet meeting alleging that his constituency did not receive adequate funding for medical care.But there seemed to be a patch up, as the two leaders later posed for pictures – an apparent bid to show there were no misgiving between them.Did BJP err in showing the door to a political veteran?However, Harak Rawat – who started his political career with the BJP in 1984, won his first MLA election from Pauri in 1991 and became UP’s youngest cabinet minister, under Kalyan Singh – had other plans in mind.His frequent meetings with senior Congress leaders, even as he sought a ticket for himself and his daughter-in-law, sowed the seeds of mistrust within the saffron party. When he did not turn up for the core committee meeting in New Delhi to finalise the tickets on January 15 and he reportedly met Harish Rawat, the BJP expelled him for “anti-party activities“.Rawat has never lost an election till date – despite having contested from different constituencies such as Pauri before the bifurcation of Uttar Pradesh, and from Lansdowne, Kotdwar and Rudraprayag after the formation of Uttarakhand. He claimed that the BJP did not even speak to him before expelling him. He insisted that he was late for the meeting in New Delhi due to traffic.Harak Singh Rawat. Photo: Twitter/@drhsrawatukIn a close contest, every seat may matterThereafter, Rawat vowed to work for the Congress and even offered to apologise to “brother” Harish Rawat. While the Congress – which is in the final stages of finalising its candidates – is now contemplating how to take his offer, the BJP will definitely feel the loss of his a leader with mass following.However, there is a new twist in Uttarakhand – where no party has retained power yet. The arrival of the Aam Aadmi Party in the political scene appears to be dividing the anti-BJP vote. Recent opinion polls have indicated that the new entrant will take away a sizeable percentage of votes. They also see the BJP leading the race. While this may have made the BJP complacent in its dealing with some of its own leaders, it could also prove a costly mistake for it – if the example of the Delhi assembly polls in 2013 is anything to go by.