Assembly elections: 184 left in poll fray in Ludhiana after withdrawal of nominations

As many as 184 candidates are left in the fray for 14 assembly seats in Ludhiana district that are set to go to the polls on February 20. A total of 14 candidates withdrew their nominations on Friday.

With the newly formed Punjab Lok Congress (PLC) and Samyukt Samaj Morcha (SSM) throwing their hat in the ring, and the mainstream parties reworking their alliances, the state is set to see a multi-cornered contest this time around. In all constituencies of Ludhiana, there are at least five prominent candidates vying for the seat.

While during the last assembly elections, held in 2017, it was a largely triangular contest with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fighting together, Lok Insaaf Party (LIP) joining hands with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and Congress going solo, this time around the political landscape has seen a massive change.

The SAD has now snapped ties with the BJP, while the LIP has also parted ways from the AAP. SAD has found an ally in the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), while LIP and AAP are going solo. The BJP too has entered a pact with the newly formed PLC and SAD (Sanyukt), while the Congress is going solo again.

The farmers’ outfit, SSM, led by Balbir Rajewal, and industrialists under the banner of Bhartiya Aarthik Party (BAP) have decided to fight together.

The two parties, however, were forced to field their candidates as Independents, as they did not get an election symbol during the filing of nominations.

In 2017, the Congress had won eight seats, AAP-LIP won five and SAD-BJP managed one segment in the district. The numbers changed after AAP’s HS Phoolka resigned from assembly and SAD’s Manpreet Ayali emerged victorious from the Dakha seat in the bypolls held in 2019. With anti-incumbency said to be at play, the Congress is leaving no stone unturned to secure its votes.

Keen contests

In Atam Nagar and Ludhiana South, represented by LIP chief Simarjit Singh Bains and his elder brother Balwinder Bains, a keen contest is emerging with their rivals trying to take them down by raking up the rape case against the LIP chief.

The district court had earlier issued non-bailable warrants against the LIP chief, but he got relief from the Supreme Court as his protection from arrest was extended by a week.

Another interesting battle of ballots is on cards in Ludhiana West constituency, represented by cabinet minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu. Ashu’s former allies, including four-time councillor Gurpreet Gogi and industrialist Tarun Jain Bawa are contesting against him on AAP and SSM tickets respectively.

A rebel Congress leader KK Bawa had also submitted nominations as an independent candidate against Ashu, but he withdrew the nominations on Friday.

Recently, a senior Congress leader and chairman of Punjab Medium Industry Development Board (PMIDB) Amarjit Tikka had also resigned from the grand old party, accusing Ashu of wiping out the party’s credibility at the grassroots. Tikka was denied party ticket from Ludhiana South, for which he blamed Ashu.

Bigwigs to campaign for candidates

With around two weeks left for elections, bigwigs of various parties are expected to descend on to the district to seek votes for the party candidates. Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to visit the city on February 6. AAP state president and CM face Bhagwant Mann was also expected to campaign in Ludhiana East constituency on Friday, but the event was called off due to bad weather conditions.