Haryana: Ex-Dy PM Devi Lal's grandson crosses over to INLD from BJP, gets poll ticket
Chandigarh, Sep 8: BJP leader Aditya Devi Lal, the grandson of former deputy prime minister Devi Lal, joined the Indian National Lok Dal on Sunday and was fielded from Dabwali for the October 5 Assembly polls in Haryana.
The 46-year-old leader joined the INLD at a rally of the party in Chautala village in Sirsa district in the presence of the party's senior leader Abhay Singh Chautala.
Aditya Devi Lal quit as Haryana Marketing Board chairman recently. With him joining the INLD, the BJP lost its prominent face in Sirsa district less than a month ahead of the polls amid the rebel trouble for the ruling party in the state.
He is the second from the Devi Lal clan to quit the BJP within a week. A few days ago, the state's Energy and Jails Minister Ranjit Chautala (79), a son of Devi Lal, also left the ruling party.
Before joining the INLD, Aditya took the blessings of his uncle and former chief minister Om Prakash Chautala at the latter's residence.
Addressing the rally, Aditya Devi Lal said he has always stood for the people and will continue to do so.
Abhay Singh Chautala, who is also Devi Lal's grandson and former chief minister O P Chautala's son, said Aditya always dedicated himself to people's welfare and raised issues of public interest.
Taking a dig at the BJP, Abhay Chautala termed its leaders "opportunists" and accused them of using people for their own benefit.
He asserted that INLD's win in the Dabwali assembly seat has become certain with Aditya's candidature from the seat and exuded confidence that the party would sweep other seats in the Sirsa district.
The INLD is contesting the Haryana assembly polls in alliance with Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) with the Mayawati-led party contesting on 37 out of 90 Assembly seats, leaving the rest for its senior partner.
Abhay Singh Chautala is seeking re-election from the Ellenabad seat in Sirsa district while his son Arjun Chautala has been fielded by INLD from the Rania segment in the district.
While with the BJP, Aditya had lost the 2019 assembly polls from Dabwali in Sirsa district to Congress' Amit Sihag.
Sihag has been renominated by his party from the seat.
Both the BJP and Congress faced rebel trouble after they came out with their first list of candidates for next month's polls. Most of those who quit were ticket hopefuls but did not find their name mentioned in the list.
Apart from Ranjit Singh Chautala and Aditya Devi Lal, prominent figures who quit the BJP include sitting MLA Lakshman Dass Napa, ex-minister Bachan Singh Arya, and former Kalanwali MLA Balkaur Singh who joined the Congress.
The Congress too faced rebellion within the party after it announced its first list of 32 candidates. Rajesh Joon quit the party after his whose candidature from the Bahadurgarh assembly segment was ignored and announced to fight as an Independent.
From Baroda in Sonipat, Congress leader Kapoor Singh Narwal raised a banner of revolt, after the party re-nominated sitting MLA Induraj Narwal from the segment. "I have been let down," he said.
Polling for the 90-member Haryana Assembly will be held on October 5. Votes will be counted on October 8.
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Vartha Bharati–Sankalp predictions align closely with Karnataka bypoll results
Bengaluru: The Vartha Bharati–Sankalp election analysis has shown a high level of accuracy in predicting the outcome of the recent Karnataka Assembly by-elections held in May 2026, correctly calling winners in both constituencies and closely estimating vote share trends.
The by-elections were held in Bagalkot and Davanagere South, drawing significant political attention as both seats were seen as key tests for the ruling Congress and opposition BJP.
According to the analysis, Vartha Bharati–Sankalp had made three major projections ahead of the results the winning party, vote share percentages, and margin of victory.
In both constituencies, the platform accurately predicted that the Congress would emerge victorious. The outcome matched the projections, with Congress candidates winning in Bagalkot and Davanagere South.
In terms of vote share, the predictions were largely in line with the final results. In Bagalkot, the BJP’s vote share was forecast in the range of 40 to 46 per cent, while the actual figure stood at 42.9 per cent. The Congress vote share, however, exceeded expectations, with the party securing 55.4 per cent against a projected range of 43 to 48 per cent.
The margin of victory in Bagalkot turned out to be significantly higher than anticipated. While the projection had placed the margin between 2,000 and 3,500 votes, the final margin was around 22,332 votes.
In Davanagere South, the predictions also remained largely accurate. The Congress vote share was projected between 43 and 51 per cent, and the final figure stood at 43.9 per cent. The BJP was expected to secure between 42 and 50 per cent but ended with 40.3 per cent.
The analysis had also identified the role of SDPI as a potential spoiler in the constituency. While its vote share was estimated around 6 per cent, the party eventually secured around 12 per cent of the vote.
The margin of victory in Davanagere South was predicted to be between 1,500 and 2,600 votes. The actual margin was higher at around 5,708 votes, though the contest remained relatively close as anticipated.
Overall, the performance of Vartha Bharati–Sankalp stood out for correctly identifying the winning parties in both seats and maintaining close accuracy in vote share estimates, with only limited deviations in specific cases.
