Haryana: Arjun Chautala lone winner; 4 family members trail
The youngest member of the Chautala family, Arjun Chautala, has emerged as the only winner among his kin in the Haryana Assembly elections. Arjun won from the Rania seat by a margin of 4,191 votes. All other family members who contested these elections are trailing behind their opponents. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress are leading in the state while parties led by the Chautalas—Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and Jannayak Janta Party (JJP)—are facing major setbacks .
Chautala family members trail in Haryana elections
According to the Election Commission's data, the BJP is leading in 49 seats and Congress in 35. JJP leader and former deputy CM Dushyant Chautala, who played the kingmaker role in the 2019 assembly polls, is placed in fifth from the Uchana Kalan seat. Congress leader Brijendra Singh is leading in this seat by just 130 votes against Devender Chatar Bhuj Attri of the BJP.
Other Chautala family members face defeat
Abhay Singh Chautala is also trailing in Ellenabad with Congress's Bharat Singh Beniwal leading. Dushyant's brother Digvijaya Singh Chautala is also trailing in Sirsa's Dabwali constituency. INLD's Sunaina Chautala is placed in third in Fatehabad. The Chautala family had split in 2018 after the INLD expelled Dushyant and Digvijay for heckling Abhay. Their father Ajay Chautala was also expelled for supporting his sons.
JJP's past performance and recent withdrawal from BJP
After the family split, Dushyant launched the JJP in December 2018. In the 2019 assembly election, the JJP won 10 seats with a vote share of over 14%. Despite being short of a majority, BJP emerged as the single-largest party. The Congress had secured 31 seats and was relying on the JJP's support. However, after days of negotiation, Dushyant chose to back the BJP.
