Haryana CM oath ceremony: Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini who won Ladwa assembly seat by a margin of 16,054 votes against his nearest Congress rival Mewa Singh may take oath on October 12, sources said. Previously, Saini was the MP from Kurukshetra, the parliamentary constituency in which Ladwa falls.
The BJP's gamble paid off with Saini leading the party to victory in the Haryana Assembly polls after a dismal showing in the Lok Sabha elections in the state and defying exit poll predictions of a clean sweep for the Congress. Saini's elevation from the Haryana BJP president to chief minister in March came at a time when the party was facing anti-incumbency following Khattar's tenure of nine-and-a-half years and attacks from a buoyant opposition on farmers' issues, unemployment, Agnipath scheme, inflation, and law and order.
Barely days after Saini, 54, was brought in by the BJP, the Model Code of Conduct came into effect with the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections and later ahead of the assembly elections, effectively giving him only two months to shift the public perception.
After Khattar resigned as chief minister in March, his Karnal assembly seat was vacated. Saini won the seat in a bypoll held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections in May, defeating Congress nominee Tarlochan Singh.
