Haryana polls: Savitri Jindal, India's richest woman, leads against BJP
What's the story
India's richest woman and fifth-richest Indian on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Savitri Jindal, is currently ahead in the Haryana Assembly elections.
She is contesting as an independent candidate from Hisar against senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and sitting MLA Kamal Gupta. She was denied a BJP ticket.
"People of Hisar are my family and it is they who wanted me to contest," Jindal told news agency PTI after announcing her nomination.
Election pledge
Jindal's commitment to Hisar and its development
Jindal, the chairperson emeritus of the Jindal Group, has been an MLA for Hisar twice before.
She first represented the constituency in 2005 as a Congress MLA and was re-elected in 2009.
When she filed her nomination in September, she said, "I have pledged to serve Hisar for its development and transformation... Om Prakash Jindal ji had established my relationship with this family."
Election rival
A closer look at Jindal's opponent, Kamal Gupta
Notably, Jindal's opponent in the election, Kamal Gupta, has been serving as the Minister of Urban Development and Housing since December 2021. He was elected to the Haryana Legislative Assembly from Hisar in the 2014 and 2019 elections.
Vote counting for the Haryana polls is underway. As per the initial trends, the BJP is leading but the Congress is close behind, pointing towards a tight contest in the state.