Haryana political crisis: Who is Haryana's new CM Nayab Singh Saini?

With an association of nearly three decades with the BJP and close relations with Manohar Lal Khattar, Saini was appointed as Haryana state president for the party last October

After Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar's surprising resignation on March 12, OBC leader Nayab Singh Saini was appointed as the new CM. Amid speculations of escalating tensions within coalition partner Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections 2024, Khattar tendered his resignation to State Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, paving the way for Saini's appointment. 

Who is Nayab Singh Saini?

Credited with solidifying the BJP's hold in the OBC community in Haryana, Saini was appointed as the party's Haryana state president last October. Beginning his association with the Bharatiya Janata Party back in 1996, Saini assumed the district general secretary of the BJP Youth Wing in Ambala in 2002, followed by a president position three years later. 
 

 

Political career

Saini became MLA for the first time in 2014 from the Narayangarh constituency. He contested from the same constituency in 2010 as well but could only muster a little over 3,000 votes. In 2016, he joined the Khattar Cabinet as a minister and is considered a close confidante of Manohar Lal Khattar. Subsequently, in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, he won from the Kurukshetra constituency with a hefty vote margin of over 3.83 lakhs against his Congress opponent Nirmal Singh. 

Educational background

Born in 1970, he finished his BA from B R Ambedkar University in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, in 1996 and LLB from Ch Charan Singh University in Meerut, UP, in 2010.

Political analysts believe that with a strong hold over the OBC community in Haryana, Saini has been a mainstay for the BJP in its minority outreach in the state. And with his close relationship with Khattar, the former Chief Minister can still wield some hefty control over the state.