Haryana CM Nayab Saini takes oath as BJP MLA from Karnal after bypoll win

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini was sworn in as a legislator by the Assembly Speaker on Thursday. Speaker Gian Chand Gupta administered the oath to the BJP leader in his chamber.

Saini recently won the bypoll for the Karnal Assembly seat, previously held by his party colleague Manohar Lal Khattar, by defeating his main rival Congress leader Tarlochan Singh.

In the 2019 Assembly elections, Khattar successfully retained the Karnal seat by defeating Tarlochan Singh. Saini, the outgoing MP from Kurukshetra, contested the by-election for the Karnal assembly seat after succeeding Khattar as chief minister.

The by-election was required after Khattar resigned as MLA from Karnal following his removal from the position of chief minister. Saini was sworn in as the chief minister on March 12.

Voting for the state's 10 Lok Sabha seats and the Karnal assembly constituency took place during the sixth phase of the general election on May 25, with the results announced on June 4.

Khattar, who was fielded by the BJP from the Karnal parliamentary segment, won the seat. 

On Wednesday, Saini said he had a "meaningful dialogue" on various topics after the two JJP MLAs Jogi Ram Sihag and Ramniwas Surjakhera met him at his residence here. 

"Today at the chief minister's residence 'Sant Kabir Kutir' here in the presence of newly elected MP from Karnal Lok Sabha (seat) and former chief minister Shri @mlkhattar ji, met the honourable MLA Shri Jogiram Sihag ji and Shri Ramniwas Surjakhera ji and had a meaningful dialogue on various topics," Saini posted on X in Hindi.

The meeting assumes significance as the opposition Congress, referring to three Independent MLAs withdrawing support from the Nayab Singh Saini government last month, has been claiming the BJP dispensation is in minority.

The Saini government has, however, repeatedly maintained there is no threat to the government and has further stated it had won the trust vote in March.

The BJP, which had won all 10 seats in Haryana in 2019, lost five of them to the Congress this time. Assembly polls are due in Haryana in October.

(With inputs from agencies)