Punjab: Vacant Vidhan Sabha seats trigger political turmoil; byelections loom in state
Punjab byelections 2024: The political landscape in Punjab is set for a significant shakeup as five Vidhan Sabha seats have fallen vacant due to the victory of four Punjab MLAs in the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, along with the acceptance of the resignation of another MLA by Punjab Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan.
The aftermath of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 has created a ripple effect in Punjab's political arena, with key players preparing for byelections to fill the vacant seats. Among the prominent figures who have secured Lok Sabha victories are Punjab minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, who clinched the Sangrur parliamentary constituency with an impressive margin of 1,72,560 votes. His victory has resulted in the Barnala constituency becoming vacant, thus necessitating a byelection.
Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, who clinched the Sangrur parliamentary constituency with an impressive margin of 1,72,560 votes
AAP candidate Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal's triumph in the Hoshiarpur Lok Sabha constituency.
Amarinder Singh Raja Warring emerging victorious in the Ludhiana Lok Sabha race, defeating the three-time Congress MP turned BJP candidate Ravneet Singh Bittu
Congress leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa's had a landslide victory over BJP candidate Dinesh Babbu in the Dera Baba Nanak Lok Sabha constituency.
The fifth seat poised for a byelection is Jalandhar West, previously represented by Sheetal Angural of AAP.
Similarly, AAP candidate Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal's triumph in the Hoshiarpur Lok Sabha constituency has led to the Chabbewal (Reserve) constituency seat becoming vacant. Chabbewal was earlier held by Dr Chabbewal as a Congress MLA. The LS election 2024 also saw Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring emerging victorious in the Ludhiana Lok Sabha race, defeating the three-time Congress MP-turned-BJP candidate Ravneet Singh Bittu. Raja Warring's victory has left the Gidderbaha constituency vacant in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa's landslide victory over BJP candidate Dinesh Babbu in the Dera Baba Nanak Lok Sabha contest has led to the vacancy of his seat in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha.
The fifth seat poised for a byelection is Jalandhar West, previously represented by Sheetal Angural of AAP. Angural's resignation from the Assembly on the same day he announced his departure from AAP and subsequent joining of BJP prompted the vacancy. Despite his later retraction and expressed desire to withdraw his resignation, Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan upheld the acceptance of Angural's resignation, paving the way for a byelection in Jalandhar West.
The vacated seats present an intriguing prospect for the political parties in Punjab, with AAP losing ground in two constituencies and Congress in three. The upcoming byelections are poised to be a battleground for political supremacy, with parties strategising meticulously to field candidates who resonate with the electorate. It remains to be seen which way the wind will blow during these contests!
- PTC NEWS
