Punjab Election Results 2017: Amarinder Singh, the last hurrah of the Maharaja

Singh, an alumnus of the prestigious Doon School, based his hopes on the anti-incumbency wave against the Badal government and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) failing to gain ground before the elections. But he had to change his strategy mid-way by launching a tirade against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The seasoned politician also launched a campaign to discredit Kejriwal and other AAP leaders by suggesting their links with “militants and gangsters”.

The Congress and the SAD-BJP alliance allegedly ran a smear campaign against Kejriwal, focusing on the latter’s supposed failures as Delhi chief minister. Congress insiders say it was a conscious attempt to seed doubts in the minds of the voters. The other conscious attempt the Congress party made was to reinvent the image of Singh with the help of poll strategist Prashant Kishore. Singh has earned the epithet of not being accessible to people and getting up late in the morning. Kishor tried to change this perception by holding events such as “Coffee with Captain” in colleges. The emphasis was laid more on Singh’s military background as Punjab borders Pakistan. Singh had joined the Army in June 1963 before resigning in early 1965. He rejoined the army and served as Capitan when war broke out between India and Pakistan in 1965.