Within hours of the election results of the Punjab civic body, all political parties claim victory even as they carefully watch the outcome of the elections held on Sunday. The Punjab State Elections Commission (PSEC) will begin counting votes on Wednesday for 2,302 districts in 117 civic bodies, including eight municipal corporations and 109 municipal councils.
The result is expected to have a far-reaching impact on state policy. The civic body elections are politically important as they were held amid ongoing farmer agitation and during the last year of Prime Minister Amarinder Singh’s rule.
While the ruling Congress closely watches how urban voters will behave as lines have been drawn between supporters of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) and those who support agricultural unrest. The congressional government in Punjab has supported farmer agitation to the hilt. The BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), meanwhile, contested the elections independently after two decades of alliance.
It is the first time that MC elections have been held in the state during the Assembly election year. The local body elections, originally scheduled for 2020, were postponed due to the Covid pandemic. In general, it is believed that most civic bodies go with the ruling party, as people believe that the government would inject money if local bodies are also governed by them. But, considering that this is the last year of government, the result could be anything.
Congress hopes to sweep the ballot box. CM’s political secretary Captain Sandeep Singh Sandhu affirms that he is not afraid of any change of vote bank. “You see… it will be a clean sweep. It will be a reflection on the work that the government led by Amarinder Singh has done in the last four years, ”he said.
On the “excesses” of the government alleged by the opposition parties, Captain Sandhu said: “The elections were held in 130 places. If the violence took place in 10 odd places, then it is not even six percent. The elections were peaceful in 94 percent of the places, ”he said.
He added that the BJP was in disarray and could not even campaign while the SAD and AAP could not even present candidates. “The three parties together could not present as many candidates as the Congress party. This is the reflection of what is coming ”, he added.
The AAP, which has been trying to present itself as an alternative to the SAD-BJP and Congress regimes alternately in the state, is also watching the outcome of the elections. “We have contested the municipal elections for the first time in the state. We are hopeful that the people will teach the ruling party, the SAD and the BJP a lesson. Despite the excesses of the government, we will do well, ”said Harpal Cheema, leader of the opposition.
He added: “Look at the violence in Bhikhiwind and Samana. They canceled the roles of our candidates in Zira. Then there were shots at Dhuri and Patti. If the government was confident of victory, why were there such incidents? “
The SAD, which put all its efforts into running candidates with the party chief, Sukhbir Singh Badal, campaigning loudly, hopes to turn the government around. “We will win. Our participation in the vote will be better than our previous performances in the civic body elections,” said party leader Daljeet Singh Cheema.
He said that people were upset with the government and that there was disappointment and anger against the ruling disposition.
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