Lok Sabha elections 2024: BJP Fields Former Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar From Karnal

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its second list of candidates on Wednesday for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections 2024. The saffron party shared 72 names, including many heavyweights who have been serving at top posts. According to the list, former Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar will contest Lok Sabha polls from the Karnal constituency.

His name was announced a day after Khattar resigned as Chief Minister and handed over the reigns of the state to his successor Nayab Singh Saini.

The big change came to action after former Haryana deputy CM and chief of the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) supremo Dushyant Chautala decided to part ways after BJP denied sharing Lok Sabha seats. The JJP had demanded 2 seats, Hissar and Biwani, to contest Lok Sabha polls out of 10, but BJP chief JP Nadda said a big no to its former alliance partner.

As per political pundits, BJP replaced Khattar with Saini, an OBC face of party in Haryana, to counter anti-incumbency and woo the non-jaat voters. Also, there are 8% OBC voters in the state and BJP has tried to aim that vote bank by naming Nayab Saini as new Chief Minister.

Taking cue from surveys, BJP found that the people of Haryana are happy with the Narendra Modi government and its policies, but equally unhappy with former CM's work.

Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda defined the BJP-JJP alliance breakup and BJP's decision to change the entire cabinet along with the Chief Minister as a tactic to trick and cheat the voters. He added that JJP is BJP's 'B-team' which will help the ruling party to dept INDIA bloc's vote bank. He said BJP-JJP will again join hands after the elections.