BJP crosses majority mark in Haryana, defying exit polls:
The BJP back from behind on Tuesday to stop Congress’s celebrations on its tracks and snatch an incredible win for a historic third term in Haryana, defying exit polls’ predictions. Jammu and Kashmir, too, turned all projections on its head as the state handed a big win to the National Conference-Congress alliance; Farooq Abdullah tapped his son Omar Abdullah as the next Chief Minister.
The BJP won 48 of 90 seats in Haryana; the majority mark stands at 46. The Congress won 37 seats. No party has won a third consecutive term in Haryana since its inception in 1966. Om Prakash Chautala’s Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), once a powerhouse in Haryana, won two seats, while the Dushyant Chautala-led Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), which aligned with the BJP in 2019, failed to open its account.
Congress-NC alliance leads in Jammu and Kashmir, wins 45 seats:
In Jammu and Kashmir, where elections to the 90-member Assembly were held for the first time in a decade, the Congress-NC combine won 48 seats, while the BJP secured 29 seats.
Mehbooba Mufti’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) bagged three seats. In something of a surprise, AAP’s Mehraj Malik won in Doda .NC leader Omar Abdullah, who won in Budgam and Ganderbal constituencies, took a jab at the BJP, saying “those who sought to destroy us were decimated instead”. Asked about government formation, he said to wait till results were fully declared. The possibility of a hung assembly in the Union Territory has opposition parties apprehensive that the five Lieutenant Governor-nominated MLAs could play a decisive role in government formation.
BJP wins 27 seats in J&K; PDP bags three seats:
In Jammu and Kashmir, where a photo finish was predicted by most exit polls, the National Conference staged a sensational comeback. The party won 41 seats and is leading in one, while ally Congress bagged six seats.
NC chief Farooq Abdullah expressed confidence about forming the government and said, “It will not be ‘police raj’ here but ‘logon ka raj’ here.” The BJP dominated the Jammu region but posted a dismal performance in the Kashmir Valley. Despite the central government’s five-year push to transform the region into a ‘Naya Kashmir’ with a focus on peace, development, and prosperity, the promised change did not convert into votes for the saffron party in the region.
Staring at defeat in Haryana, the Congress lodged a complaint with the Election Commission alleging “inordinate and unacceptable delay in updating trends” on its website. The Election Commission dismissed the Congress’s charge as unsubstantiated. In a strongly-worded statement, the EC said it “unequivocally rejects” the party’s attempt to “surreptitiously give credence to irresponsible, unfounded and uncorroborated malafide narratives”
