Election Results Day 2 Live: Advantage BJP In Haryana As Independents Show Support

4.12 pm: “Haven’t spoken to anyone,” says JJP’s Dushyant Chautala

In a press conference on Friday, Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) leader Dushyant Chautala said that the party has not spoken to anyone till now. 

He, however, added that they will talk to the concerned people and will have a “positive result” in the next few hours or days.

JJP president Sardar Nishant Singh had told ANI that the party has invitation from both sides.

The Haryana Assembly poll verdict threw up a fractured mandate with the Congress winning 31 of the 90 seats and the BJP getting 40 seats. The half-way mark is 46.

2:20 pm: Advantage BJP In Haryana As Independents Offer Support

Meanwhile most independent MLAs in Haryana have thrown there weight behind the BJP, which makes it look like the party may just be able to cobble up numbers. 

Independents Somvir Sangwan, Nayan Pal Rawat, Ranjit Singh have said that they will support the BJP. 

Haryana Lokhit Party leader Gopal Kanda has also said be will support the BJP. 

2:15 pm: Leader of legislative party will be chose on Saturday, says BJP

After several meetings and statements from several leaders of the BJP, it is still not sure if the party will stake claim to form government. 

However, party leader Anil Jain said there will be a party meeting tomorrow in Chandigarh where the leader of the Legislative party will be chosen. 

11:55 am: Manohar Lal Khattar In Delhi, Says ‘Will Form Govt’

11:52 am: Poster Comes Up In Worli Calling For Aaditya Thackeray As CM

Aadtiya Thackeray made history on Thursday by becoming the only person from his family to have contested and won an election. 

And with Shiv Sena’s better-than-expected performance, the Shiv Sena has been pushing for him as chief minister. 

Day after the election results a poster came up in Worli calling for Thackeray to become CM. 

10:50 am: Independents Supporting Khattar Digging Own Political Graves, Says Congress

10:49 am: Mandate Against BJP, Says JJP; To Hold Press Conference At 4 pm

High drama continued over Haryana on day two with reports that the JJP had invitations to be a part of the government from both sides. The party said that they will hold a press conference at 4 pm on Friday.

Meanwhile, JJP president Sardar Nishant Singh told ANI, “We have invitation from both the sides. We’ll take our decision only after discussing with our elected candidates. If there is no clear majority for BJP, obviously the mandate is against them. We will decide our stand after the meeting.”

9:50 am: BJP-Shiv Sena Fare Well In Modi’s ‘Aspirational Districts’

The BJP -Shiv Sena alliance has slightly improved in the four districts of Maharashtra that were selected under the Modi government’s ‘aspirational districts’ programme.

The four districts selected under the Centre’s programme for expeditious socio-economic development are Gadchiroli, Osmanabad, Washim and Nandurbar. They collectively comprise 14 assembly segments of the total 288 in the state.

While the BJP-Sena combine had won eight of these seats in the 2014 assembly elections, this time it bagged 10 of them. (PTI)

9:40 am: Manohar Lal Khattar Leaves For Delhi To Chalk Out Plan

After a not so great performance in the elections in Haryana, the BJP is busy planning how it will form government in the state. Even though it emerged as the party with the largest votes, it was not enough to form government. 

On Friday Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar will be in Delhi and hold a meeting with BJP working president JP Nadda. 

9:33 am: BJP Eyes Independents In Haryana, To Form Govt In Maharashtra

What was supposed to be a straight forward election result day, turned out to be more complicated than that, with the BJP not winning as many seats in either Maharashtra or Haryana as they had expected. 

Now the BJP and Shiv Sena, bickering allies as always, are trying to figure out a post poll formula. Even as Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray asked “who will be CM” right as the results came, and Sanjay Raut pushed for a 50-50 formula for government, the BJP continued to play hard ball. (Read all of yesterday’s updates here )

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said despite the BJP ending up winning fewer seats in 2019 compared to the 2014 Assembly polls, its “strike rate” is better this time.

He thanked the people of Maharashtra for giving a “clear and decisive mandate” to the BJP-led Mahayuti (grand alliance), adding his party and the Sena will go by what was “pre-decided” between them on sharing of power.

Fadnavis said the BJP contested 260 seats in 2014 and won 122. “This time, we contested 150 seats and our allies 14 and as per trends, we are likely to win 105 seats. Our strike rate was 47 per cent in 2014, now it is 70 per cent,” he said.

He said the BJP secured 28 per cent votes in 2014 and polled around 26 per cent votes across 164 seats this time.

In Maharashtra the BJP failed to cross the half-way mark and the Shiv Sena, an ally, won enough seats to be able to arm twist the BJP to ask for a better deal. The NCP, thanks to Sharad Pawar’s single-handed, relentless campaign emerged a bigger player than the Congress. 

The BJP won 105 seats, Shiv Sena won 56 seats, the NCP 54 seats and the Congress 44 seats. Raj Thackeray’s MNS failed to make a dent with winning only one seat. 

Meanwhile in Haryana, where the BJP finished a little ahead of the Congress after a neck-and-neck battle, Home Minister Amit Shah claimed that it would form government. 

“The (Manohar Lal) Khattar government in Haryana has made every effort for people’s welfare under the central leadership of (Narendra) Modi. I thank people for making the BJP the single-largest party and giving it another opportunity to serve them,” Shah said in a tweet.

The BJP won 40 seats and the Congress 31. Winning 10 seats, Dushyant Chautala’s Jannayak Janta Party emerged a key player that both the Congress and the BJP are now trying to woo. 

However, according to NDTV , sources have said that the BJP is likely to have support of the 6 independents who won this election. 

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