Two independent MLAs in Haryana extended their support to BJP on Wednesday with others including India’s richest woman Savitri Jindal in talks with the party.
Tally of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which already emerged victorious in the Haryana assembly elections, has now gone up to 50 from 48.
Although BJP has secured enough votes to form the government for the third time, the support by independent MLAs will bolster its consolidation in the state.
Who are the independent MLAs that won?
Chairperson of the OP Jindal Group, Savitri Jindal, has made a name for herself in both the world of business and politics. An erstwhile Congress leader, Jindal won the Hisar seat. She has made a comeback in the Hisar assembly constituency after being its MLA in 2005 and 2009. She contested the elections as an independent after she was denied a BJP ticket.
A former BJP leader, Devender Kadyan won the Ganaur seat as an independent. He left the saffron party after being denied a ticket from the same assembly seat. As he made his resignation public via Facebook Live, Kadyan hurled accusations at the BJP claiming that tickets were being bought and sold internally.
Rajesh Joon, the independent MLA who won the Bahadurgarh seat, defeated his BJP rival Dinesh Kaushik by a margin of 41,999 votes.
Congress ‘analysing’ loss
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the party was analysing the “unexpected” results in Haryana and will apprise the Election Commission about complaints received from various constituencies of the state.
In his first reaction after the shock defeat in Haryana, the former Congress president also thanked the people of Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir for their support.
“My heartfelt thanks to the people of Jammu and Kashmir – INDIA’s victory in the state is a victory of the Constitution, a victory of democratic self-respect,” he said.
“We are analysing the unexpected results of Haryana. We will inform the Election Commission about the complaints coming from many assembly constituencies,” he added.
With inputs from agencies
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2 independent MLAs back BJP, Savitri Jindal from Hisar in talks with party; victory tally touches 50
