Stage set for new chief ministers to take over in Haryana, J&K

The swearing-in ceremony for the new Haryana government will take place on October 17, chief minister-caretaker Nayab Singh Saini said on Saturday, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the ceremony along with chief ministers of some states ruled by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The oath ceremony is likely to happen within a day of the swearing-in of Omar Abdullah as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, where the process was initiated after a late evening between him and the Union territory’s lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha, when the National Conference leader staked claim to form the government.

“We have received the nod of the Prime Minister that on October 17, in Panchkula, the chief minister and council of ministers will take oath,” Union minister and Saini’s predecessor Manohar Lal Khattar told reporters in Delhi.

Saini made a similar remark in Kurukshetra, where he met former state BJP president Atam Prakash Manchanda.

While neither said specifically who will take oath, people aware of the matter said the leadership is decided on Saini continuing on the post, according to news agency ANI.

The BJP’s victory in the state, announced in results declared on Wednesday, was a surprise hat-trick in Haryana, defying exit polls that the party would lose power to the Congress. Out of the 90 seats, incumbent won 48.

Many have seen the switch of the CM’s post – Khattar was replaced by Saini in March – as a key factor in the party’s successful campaign, which appeared to have consolidated the non-Jat votes and blunted anti-incumbency. Saini is an other backward classes (OBC) leader and party not only held on to its core vote but also made inroads into the Congress’s stronghold. Saini has held a series of meetings in the national capital in the days after the results were announced, including with Modi, Shah, and party president JP Nadda.

According to news agency ANI, discussions were being held over the deputy chief minister position, with the party possibly considering new faces. Eight out of ten ministers from the previous Saini government lost their elections.

The report also said the oath-taking ceremony is anticipated to attract around 100,000 attendees.

The BJP’s best-ever haul of 48 seats was on the back of a 39.94% vote share, 11 more than the Congress’s. The JJP, which was a BJP ally and had pulled out of the government in March and precipitated the change in the CM post, did not win a single seat.

In J&K, National Conference and its alliance with Congress won 48 of the 90 seats. Speaking on the oath ceremony, NC leader Abdullah said: “It will be a long process as there is Centre rule here. The LG will first send the documents to Rashtrapati Bhavan and then to [Union] home ministry. We have been told it will take 2-3 days. So if it happens before Tuesday, we will have the swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday,” he said on Friday.