Haryana Election Result 2019 | Will Dushyant Chautala's JJP end up being kingmaker?

Even as counting for the Haryana Assembly polls is underway, early trends show that the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), formed by Dushyant Chautala after he split from the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), could emerge as kingmaker.

Trends show that while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is barely leading, the JJP has managed to grab leads in 10 seats. That is a significant number in an assembly of 90 seats, and many experts have stated that Chautala might end up becoming the kingmaker.

With the Congress leading in 34 seats, reports have suggested that the JJP might mull a tie-up with the Grand Old Party to trump the BJP and form the government in Haryana.

Addressing the media, Chautala, in a jab at the BJP, said, " 75-paar toh fail ho gaya, ab Yamuna-paar ki baari hai (The BJP has failed to cross 75-mark, now its time for Yamuna-paar) ".

Meanwhile, in another interview to news channel NDTV, Chautala said a decision would be taken by the national executive regarding the way ahead- if the JJP indeed emerges as the party that could make or break the government in Haryana.

The INLD, a party founded by former deputy prime minister Devi Lal, split in 2018 after a bitter power struggle between his two grandsons - Ajay and Abhay Chautala, the two sons of party president Om Prakash Chautala.

The feud saw Ajay Chautala and his sons Dushyant and Digvijay being expelled from the Haryana-based party by senior Chautala, who threw his weight behind the younger son Abhay. The trigger for the split was when the supporters of the young Chautalas hooted at their uncle Abhay at a rally in Gohana in October 2018.

Dushyant Chautala, who is the MP from Hisar, launched Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) in December 2018. The 30-year-old's supporters are now projecting him as the next chief minister.

The split in the party came at a time when it was gearing to come back to power after a 14-year hiatus. The development is likely to hit the party's chances.

JJP tasted its first electoral success during the Jind bypolls, when it came in second to the BJP but had managed to trump Congress' heavyweight candidate, Randeep Singh Surjewal. JJP had then polled 37,681 votes.

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