Savitri Jindal, India’s richest woman and Haryana’s Independent winner, has agreed to endorse the BJP following a meeting with Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and former Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Deb. With her support and that of two other Independents who have previously committed their support, the BJP’s majority in the state assembly has increased to 51 seats.
Savitri Jindal won the Hisar seat as an Independent, defeating BJP candidate Kamal Gupta. At 74, she had served in Bhupinder Hooda’s government in 2013, but quit the Congress in March after her son, BJP Kurukshetra MP Naveen Jindal, switched parties.
Independent MLAs Devender Kadyan and Rajesh Joon formally joined the BJP earlier today at an event held at the house of Union Minister and Haryana in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan, along with state BJP president Mohan Lal Badoli.
The BJP astonished its opponents when it won 48 seats in the state elections for the third time in a row. According to the Election Commission, the Congress won 37 seats, while the INLD got only two, and three seats went to independent candidates.
The National Conference (NC) and Congress combination won the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, which were the first since 2014. These elections were important because they were held for the first time after Jammu and Kashmir was recognized as a Union Territory and the repeal of Article 370, which had provided the former state unique status.
