Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar resigned on Tuesday, just days before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, as per sources. The move comes amidst a growing rift between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ally, the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), in the state.
Sources have indicated that BJP’s Nayab Saini or Sanjay Bhatia are the front-runners for the Chief Minister post. The BJP was scheduled to hold a legislative party meeting in Chandigarh at 11:30 AM, while Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala convened a meeting of the JJP in Delhi.
Reports suggest that some JJP MLAs skipped Chautala’s meeting and are allegedly in contact with the BJP. Sources claim that at least four JJP MLAs are in touch with the BJP.
Earlier, sources had indicated a growing rift between the BJP and the JJP after Chautala met BJP national president JP Nadda regarding seat-sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Chautala had reportedly sought time from Amit Shah, but Khattar’s cabinet resigned before any such meeting could take place. Sources added that Chautala wanted seats for the Lok Sabha polls, which the BJP was unwilling to concede.
The strained ties between the BJP and the JJP escalated following their inability to reach a seat-sharing agreement for the Lok Sabha polls. In the 2019 polls, the BJP had secured all 10 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
In 2019, the BJP fell short of the majority mark in the Haryana legislative assembly. Consequently, it formed a coalition government with Dushyant Chautala’s JJP. The assembly, comprising 90 members, requires 46 seats for a majority. The BJP currently holds 41 MLAs and is supported by six independent MLAs. Additionally, Gopal Kanda’s Haryana Lokhit Party also supports the BJP.
Besides the Lok Sabha elections, which may be held in a month or two, the term of the Haryana legislative assembly is set to conclude on November 3. Assembly elections in the state might be held in October.
