Dushyant Chautala seals the deal with BJP

(From left) JJP leader Dushyant Chautala, BJP working president J P Nadda, Home Minister Amit Shah, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and MoS Finance Anurag Thakur after announcing the alliance, in New Delhi, on Friday. Pic/PTI

New Delhi: The BJP on Friday clinched an alliance with the Jannayak Janta Party, which has won 10 seats in the 90-member assembly, by offering it the post of deputy chief minister. BJP president Amit Shah announced at a press conference, held with JJP leader Dushyant Chautala, that the chief minister will be from his party and the deputy chief minister from the regional party.

Incumbent Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar is likely to be elected the BJP legislative party leader at a meeting in Chandigarh on Saturday and will then stake claim before the governor to form the government. Chautala is likely to be his deputy, sources said. "Going by the mandate of the voters of Haryana, leaders of both parties have decided that BJP and JJP will form the government together. The chief minister will be from the BJP and deputy chief minister will be from the JJP," Shah told reporters.

The alliance is in line with the "spirit" of people's mandate, he added. Shah and Chautala were also joined by Khattar and other BJP leaders at the press conference. Chautala said his party believed the alliance was necessary for stability in Haryana. Khattar said both the parties had worked together in the past. Sources said Shah had spoken to Chautala even before the results were out, following inputs that the BJP might not get a majority on its own. Chautala had earlier in the day said he would support the party that agrees with his organisation's common minimum programme.

Top BJP leaders moved swiftly since Thursday night to cobble together a majority in Haryana after the party's tally fell to 40 in the state, six short of the majority mark. Most of the seven independent MLAs have also pledged their support to the party.

Majority of the independent MLAs are BJP rebels and several of them have given their letters of support to Khattar during a meeting at the residence of the party's working president, JP Nadda, in the national capital. BJP leaders are also confident of lone Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLA Abhay Chautala's support to its government. Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman and BJP general secretary Arun Singh will attend Saturday's legislative party meeting as central observers, Jain said.

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