Punjab Elections

Voting for Punjab's Municipal Corporation elections commences in Ludhiana

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Ashok Parashar Pappi exercised his franchise at the Government Primary Smart School in Ludhiana

Sukhbir Badal to face religious censure: Will Akali Dal chart a new path?

Sukhbir Singh Badal will receive 'punishment' from religious authorities for his acts as chief minister of Punjab. The question is whether a reinvention of Badal and the Akali Dal will follow

EC reschedules bypolls in UP, Punjab, Kerala from Nov 13 to Nov 20

The Election Commission on Monday rescheduled assembly bypolls in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Kerala from November 13 to November 20 in view of festivals, an official statement said. Nine seats are going to polls in Uttar Pradesh, four in Punjab and one in Kerala. Parties including Congress, BJP, BSP and RLD had urged the poll body to reschedule the polls in view of various festivals, saying that it could impact voter turnout. According to the Congress, a significant portion of the electorate in the Palakkad assembly seat in Kerala will celebrate the festival of Kalpathi Rastholsavam from November 13 to 15. In Punjab, the party had said, the 555th Prakash Parv of Sri Guru Nanak Dev will be celebrated on November 15 and an 'akhand path' will be organised from November 13 onwards. BJP, BSP and RLD had said that in Uttar Pradesh, people travel for three-four days ahead of Kartik Purnima, which will be celebrated on November 15.

38 candidates fighting on 4 seats in Bihar bypolls; 34 in fray in Assam

Altogether 38 candidates were on Wednesday left in the fray for Tarari, Ramgarh, Belaganj and Imamganj assembly seats of Bihar where by-polls are scheduled next month. According to a statement from the Election Commission, a total of 50 candidates, including nine women, had filed their nomination papers till October 25, but six of those were rejected during scrutiny and an equal number of persons withdrew from the contest. Of the four constituencies, Belaganj has the highest number of 14 candidates, including RJD's Vishwanath Kumar Singh, son of Surendra Prasad Yadav whose election to the Lok Sabha from Jehanabad has necessitated the by-election. His main rival is Manorama Devi of JD(U), a former MLC while Jan Suraaj's Mohd Amjad and AIMIM's Mohd Zamin Ali Hasan are expected to queer the pitch for the two primary contenders. The lowest number of five candidates are in the fray for Ramgarh where RJD's Ajit Kumar Singh, the son of state party chief Jagadanand Singh, hopes to retain t

Nayab Saini, Capt Amarinder among BJP's star campaigners for Punjab bypolls

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh and Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Ravneet Singh Bittu are among the BJP's 40 star campaigners for the upcoming Punjab Assembly bypolls. The names of BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh, Punjab unit chief Sunil Jakhar, Union minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, former Union ministers Anurag Thakur and Smriti Irani, and former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani also figured in the list which was released by the party on Tuesday evening. MPs Manoj Tiwari and Ravi Kishan, BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa and Pathankot MLA Ashwani Sharma will also campaign for the party. The bypolls to the four assembly seats -- Gidderbaha, Dera Baba Nanak, Chabbewal and Barnala -- were necessitated after MLAs representing them were elected to the Lok Sabha earlier this year. The BJP has fielded Ravikaran Singh Kahlon from Dera Baba Nanak, Kewal Singh Dhillon from Barnala and Manpreet Singh Badal from ..

Punjab Cong seeks postponement of panchayat polls amid irregularities

The Punjab Congress has sought postponement of the panchayat polls slated for Tuesday, alleging irregularities in the nomination process and also apprehending irregularities during the counting of votes. A delegation of the Congress, led by leader of opposition in the Punjab Assembly and senior party leader Partap Singh Bajwa, on Monday met the Punjab State Election Commissioner here and urged that the polls be deferred by three weeks. Elections to 13,229 gram panchayats are slated to be held on October 15. Speaking to reporters after the meeting here, Bajwa said the delegation has requested the state election commissioner to postpone the panchayat elections by three weeks. He alleged that "massive irregularities" were committed during the nomination process as nominations of many opposition-back candidates were "wrongfully" rejected. Many candidates were not given no-objection certificates (NOC) required during the nominations filing, he alleged. Many people, whose nominations w

'Baseless': BJP denies rumours of Punjab Chief Sunil Jakhar's resignation

Sunil Jakhar, chief of Punjab's BJP unit, is rumoured to have resigned ahead of the October 15 panchayat elections. Jakhar quit Congress to join the BJP in 2022

Jailed MP Amritpal Singh's parents thank Channi for his support in Parl

Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh clarified that his statement does not reflect the position of the Indian National Congress in any way

Punjab BJP to hold rural outreach, leaders to speak with stakeholders

The BJP will hold a rural outreach under which its leaders and workers will go to villages in Punjab and hold dialogue with various stakeholders, including farmers on various issues. Punjab is a sensitive border state with typical problems and needs to be addressed with the same spirit, state BJP chief Sunil Jakhar on Friday said. Stressing that dialogue is the way forward for effective resolution of all issues being faced by Punjab, Jakhar said the farmers, agricultural scientists and economists must be taken on board to evolve a consensual resolution. Jakhar was speaking to the media this evening after presiding over a day-long meeting of state BJP's extended executive committee meeting here. He said it was felt during the meeting that a false narrative has been built, a myth has been created to project the BJP against farmers. To break that myth, that lies and that perception, which has been built, dialogue at all levels is needed, said Jakhar. The BJP has been working for all

Lok Sabha elections Phase 7: 49.68% voter turnout recorded till 3 pm

Lok Sabha polls 2024 Phase 7 voter turnout: At more than 60 per cent, Jharkhand recorded the highest voter turnout at 3 pm, Bihar had the lowest at 42.95 per cent

Lok Sabha polls 2024 Phase 7: Over 40% voter turnout recorded till 1 pm

Lok Sabha polls 2024 Phase 7 voter turnout: Himachal Pradesh had the highest voter turnout at 48.63

LS elections: Punjab records nearly 38% turnout, Chandigarh 40% until 1 pm

Polling began on Saturday morning for 13 Lok Sabha constituencies in Punjab and the lone Chandigarh seat in the seventh and final phase of parliamentary elections. Amid tight security arrangements, polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm, said the officials. INDIA bloc allies -- the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) -- are contesting separately while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) are contesting the Lok Sabha polls on their own for the first time since 1996. The Sukhbir Badal-led SAD walked out of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in 2020 over the now-repealed three farm laws. Besides the Congress, AAP, SAD and the BJP, two other parties -- SAD (Amritsar) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) -- have also fielded their candidates. Punjab is going to witness a multi-cornered contest on all the 13 Lok Sabha seats. The AAP, Congress, SAD, BJP, BSP and the SAD (Amritsar) are contesting in all the constituencies of Punjab. However, the .

Musical chairs, gen-next politicians look to shake up Punjab's poll fray

The churn in Punjab politics has been the biggest among the states ahead of the Lok Sabha polls

EC to ensure 100% webcasting of all polling booths in Punjab: CEO Sibin C

Sibin C said that they have introduced a revamped NextGen District Information System for Elections (DISE) this time

Lok Sabha polls: Actor Karamjeet among 8 candidates in AAP's Punjab list

The Aam Aadmi Party said that it will fight the Lok Sabha polls in Punjab alone, giving a jolt to the Congress. Both are members of the Opposition alliance INDIA but could face each other in Punjab

Shubman Gill designated as 'state icon' for Lok Sabha polls: Punjab CEO

The Punjab Chief Electoral Officer's office has designated Indian cricketer Shubman Gill as a "state icon" for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. In a statement, Chief Electoral Officer Sibin C said on Monday that Gill will engage in various campaigns aimed at voter awareness to ensure a voting percentage of 70 per cent. The poll panel has set the target of "Is Vaar 70 Paar". Punjab had recorded a voter turnout of 65.96 in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls for the 13 seats. The CEO said Punjab-resident Gill, popular among sports enthusiasts, especially the youth, has been appointed as a "state icon" for the polls. Sibin C said that in a meeting with all deputy commissioners of Punjab on Friday, they were asked to identify such areas where the voting percentage was low during the last elections. He said that awareness campaigns and appeals made by Shubman Gill in such areas would motivate the voters and help increase the turnout. Earlier, popular Punjabi singer Tarsem Jassar had been selected a

SAD leader Majithia appears before special SIT in Patiala in drugs case

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia on Tuesday appeared before a special investigation team of the Punjab Police in Patiala district in a drugs case. The former minister was summoned by the SIT led by Deputy Inspector General (Patiala range) Harcharan Singh Bhullar. Tight security arrangements were made around the police lines in Patiala ahead of the appearance of Majithia before the SIT. Several Akali workers had gathered at the spot to express solidarity with Majithia. Majithia was previously questioned by the SIT, led by the then additional director general of police Mukhwinder Singh Chhina, on December 30, 2023 in connection with the drugs case. Before that he was grilled by the SIT on December 18. The Punjab Police formed a new SIT under the chairmanship of Bhullar after Chhina retired on December 31. Majithia was booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act on December 20, 2021, when the then chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi-led .

Sangrur bypoll: SAD (A) candidate Simranjit Mann inching towards victory

SAD (Amritsar) Simranjit Singh Mann appears to be inching towards victory from the Sangrur Lok Sabha seat, having gained a lead of over 7,000 votes over his nearest AAP rival Gurmail Singh

Close fight between AAP, SAD candidates in Punjab's Sangrur bypoll

Aam Aadmi Party and SAD (Amritsar) candidates are neck and neck in the Sangrur Lok Sabha seat, according to initial trends available for the bypoll

Counting of votes begins for Punjab's Sangrur bypolls amid tight secuirty

Counting of votes for the Sangrur Lok Sabha bypolls got underway at 8 am Sunday amid tight security arrangements