Haryana BJP chief steps down in face of defeat

As soon as it became clear that BJP may not form the government on its own in Haryana, it's state unit chief Subhash Barala offered his resignation to the party leadership.

Barala himself lost from Tohana against Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) candidate Devinder Singh Babli by over 25,090 votes.

According to the latest trends released by the Election Commission, the BJP was leading in 37 seats in the 90-member Haryana Assembly, still 9 short of the majority mark. The Congress was leading in 35 seats while JJP was ahead in 9 seats, appearing to be the kingmaker.

Trends showed that at least eight ministers and over 15 sitting BJP legislators were trailing.

Finance Minister Captain Abhimanyu also faced defeat from Narnaund, while another Jat leader and Cabinet minister, O.P. Dhankar, was trailing.