Congress candidate and wrestler Vinesh Phogat secured victory in the Julana seat during the Haryana Assembly election on Tuesday, as confirmed by the Election Commission. In her first-ever election, Phogat defeated BJP's Yogesh Kumar by more than 6,015 votes. Surender Lather of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) finished third in the closely watched Jind district constituency.
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Phogat initially took an early lead when vote counting began but briefly fell behind. However, she regained her advantage and maintained it, ultimately achieving a decisive win.
Haryana voted in a single phase on October 5, with a voter turnout of 67.90 percent. The Julana constituency recorded a higher turnout, with 74.66 percent of eligible voters casting their ballots. The Haryana elections mark the first significant direct contest between the BJP and Congress since the Lok Sabha polls. The outcome is likely to be leveraged by the winning party to shape a favorable narrative in upcoming elections in other states over the next few months.