Manohar Lal Khattar was sworn in as the chief minister of Haryana for second straight time on Sunday with the support of Dushyant Chautala-led Jannayak Janta Party and Independent legislators, ANI reported. Chautala took oath as deputy chief minister at the swearing-in ceremony held at Raj Bhavan in Chandigarh at 2.20 pm.

Former chief minister and Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda, former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Shiromani Akali Dal leader attended the event, The Indian Express reported. Dushyant Chautala’s father Ajay Chautala, who was granted furlough for a period of two weeks from Tihar Jail on Saturday, attended the event. In 2013, Ajay Chautala and his father OP Chautala were convicted in the teachers’ recruitment scam and are currently serving 10 years in prison. They were found guilty of illegally recruiting 3,206 junior basic teachers in 2000.

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Haryana Governor Satyadeo Narain Arya had invited the Bharatiya Janata Party to form the next government on Saturday after a meeting with Khattar and several legislators. “We collectively – including the BJP’s 40, JJP’s 10 and seven Independents, in all 57 MLAs – presented our claim before the Governor,” Khattar told reporters. Earlier in the day, the BJP had unanimously elected Khattar as leader at a meeting of its legislative party.

Common minimum programme

The BJP-Jannayak Janta Party alliance was announced at a joint press conference in New Delhi late on Friday after Chautala’s party extended support to Khattar on the basis of a common minimum programme that includes 75% reservation to local youth in jobs in Haryana and increase in old age pension.

The BJP won 40 out of the 90 seats in the Haryana Assembly elections, six short of a majority in the 90-member house. The Congress won 31 seats, and the Jannayak Janta Party 10 seats.

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