Jind bypoll: BJP wins seat for first time, defeats Digvijay Chautala and Randeep Surjewala

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday posted an impressive victory in Haryana's Jind Assembly bypoll with a healthy margin of over 12,000 votes. While BJP candidate Krishna Middha garnered a total of 49,929 votes, Congress' Randeep Singh Surjewala managed 22,547 votes to claim the third spot. JJP's Digvijay Chautala, who took an early lead in Jind, polled 37,681 votes.

After the results came out, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to twitter and thanked the people of Haryana. “I thank the people of Jind for blessing @BJP4Haryana. This is a seat where the Party has never won before. Glad to see the development agenda of BJP finding support among all sections of society. I congratulate the Haryana BJP and CM @mlkhattar for assiduously serving the people,” he tweeted.

I thank the people of Jind for blessing @BJP4Haryana. This is a seat where the Party has never won before. Glad to see the development agenda of BJP finding support among all sections of society. I congratulate the Haryana BJP and CM @mlkhattar for assiduously serving the people.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 31, 2019

Addressing the media right after his win, Middha said, "I would like to thank everyone who supported the party and me. It's their victory. There were big leaders in the contest as well, but we have defeated them too. We will follow the schemes launched by PM and take them forward". In a related note, Krishna Middha is the son of late INLD law-maker Hari Chand Midha.

Congratulating Middha for his victory in Jind by-elections, Congress candidate Randeep Singh Surjewala said, "I hope Manohar Lal Khattar and Krishna Middha ji will fulfil the dreams of the people of Jind. I was given a responsibility by the party which I fulfilled to the best of my abilities"

"I congratulate Krishna Middha ji," the Congress national spokesperson added.

Randeep Surjewala on Jind bypoll result: I hope Manohar Lal Khattar and Krishna Middha ji will fulfil the dreams of the people of Jind. I was given a responsibility by the party which I fulfilled to the best of my abilities, I congratulate Krishna Middha ji. pic.twitter.com/O97opemVsY

— ANI (@ANI) January 31, 2019

Read | Ramgarh bypoll results: Congress hits a century mark in Rajasthan Assembly, wins by over 12,000 votes

Being touted as the prestige battle between the BJP and the Congress, the Jind bypoll was a test of the popularity of Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar ahead of the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections later in the year. The contest was also significant for the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), which was formed after a split in the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) last December.

The bypoll, which saw a voter turnout of 75.77 per cent, was necessitated following the death of INLD legislator Hari Chand Midha last year. This time the party fielded Umed Redhu in an attempt to retain the seat.

Earlier in the day, the counting of votes for the Jind bypoll was briefly halted after the Opposition raised issues over alleged EVM tampering in some of the tables. Police also lathicharge at the protesting workers as chaos erupted near the counting centre.

The counting of votes also took up for Ramgarh bypoll which went to poll along with Jind on Monday, January 28, 2019. With a win in Ramgarh, the Congress on Thursday hit the century mark in the 200-member strong Rajasthan Assembly, reducing its dependence on support from other non-BJP parties.