Steadily they went sweeping!

“What’s happening here?” an inquisitive safai karamchari sweeping a verandah of the shopping centre in sector 17 probed a group standing under the office of election commission of India at 7:55am, on Tuesday.

The counting for polls that took place on January 30, is about to start in 52 counting centres for 117 constituencies across the state.

“Who is sweeping?” one from the group asked. In the upmarket city centres of Sector 17, office of ECI is gearing to unseal the fate of 1078 candidates. Projector screens are hung up with lotus, palm and scale, kite… symbols flashing opposite the blank space to filled up. And stress in the air is palpable.

“In few hours from now, you will come to know who have polished which party,” a driver making extra effort to shine the window pane of his taxi parked nearby, remarked.

CEO Kusumjit Sidhu after making last minute check of the arrangement she sat in her cubicle. In three days time on March 9 the election code would come to an end. The winners would take over.
And the counting began.

At 10: 00 am trends reads – SAD leading with 41 candidates ahead of their competitors and Congress trailing 28 candidates leading in the counting. And not to forget BJP the deciding factor is steady with its candidates leading on 9 seats.

About 45 minutes after that SAD’s candidates were leading on 57 seats, congress party’s on 44 and BJP steadily growing at 11 (though short of 8 of its previous record of winning 19 seats in 2007 elections) and it has played its role. Other at 4.

The ruling combine is again ahead on 68 seats. The results are one-plus the last election figures of coalition winning 67 seats.

“Othey bhangrey pey rehe aa…poonja fer taa. (There is jubilation in Akali camp, they have sweeped,” a representative from Shiromani Akali Dal sending updates to the party top brass declared.