Chief Minister ML Khattar quits as BJP, Haryana ally 'head for split'
Manohar Lal Khattar has resigned as the Haryana Chief Minister amid speculation of a split between the BJP and the Dushyant Chautala-led Jannayak Janta Party (JJP).
In Short
- Manohar Lal Khattar quits as Haryana Chief Minister
- BJP MLA claims Manohar Lal Khattar will become Chief Minister again
- Development comes amid speculation of a split between BJP and Jannayak Janta Party
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday resigned from his post amid speculation of a split between the BJP and the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) in the state. The development came ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
Khattar and his cabinet ministers went to Raj Bhavan and submitted their resignation letters to Governor Bandaru Dattatreya. The Governor accepted their resignations.
However, BJP leader Kanwar Pal Gurjar claimed that Khattar is expected to take oath as the Haryana Chief Minister again. But hours later, Nayab Singh Saini was named as the new Chief Minister.
HARYANA POLITICAL CRISIS: LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
The saffron party is likely to form a new government with six Independent legislators and one from the Haryana Lokhit Party (HLP), sources told India Today TV earlier.
In the 90-member Haryana assembly, the BJP has 41 MLAs, Congress 30 and JJP 10. Seven are Independents, while there is one MLA each from the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and the HLP. A party or an alliance can form the government in the state if it has 46 or more seats.
The development came amid worsening ties between the BJP and the JJP worsened following differences over seat-sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The BJP won all 10 Lok Sabha seats in Haryana in 2019.
The JJP was keen to contest two seats but the BJP was not in favour of giving seats to the Chautala-led party as it wants to contest all 10 Lok Sabha seats, sources said.
The BJP and the JJP formed a post-poll alliance after the saffron party did not get a majority in the 2019 Haryana assembly polls. Assembly election is slated to be held in the state later this year.
The JJP held a meeting with its MLAs at Chautala's farmhouse in Delhi to discuss the political situation in Haryana.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the chaos in Haryana as evidenced in the split was a reflection of growing people's angst over issues concerning farmers, youth and wrestlers.
In a post in Hindi on X, he said, "The chaos that we are seeing in Haryana is a result of pressure from farmers, youths and wrestlers and the same is going to happen in the country too. It is time for change."
Congress leader Kumari Selja said that "it is time for change" and accused the BJP of betraying the people of the country. "The Congress will get them justice," she said.
Meanwhile, JJP spokesperson Arvind Bharadwaj announced that the party will fight on all 10 Lok Sabha seats and 90 assembly constituencies in Haryana, intensifying the rumours around over a split with the BJP.
Bharadwaj said the JJP will issue an official statement soon when asked about the future of ties with the BJP.