Turnout tanks in all 4 segments amid skirmishes
CHANDIGARH : Over 60% turnout was witnessed in the byelections to four assembly seats -- Phagwara (reserve), Jalalabad, Dakha and Mukerian -- in Punjab on Monday, with sporadic skirmishes being reported between the ruling Congress and opposition workers.
Polling was slow in the morning, but as the day progressed it picked up pace. The results of the elections will be declared on October 24.
While Jalalabad recorded a polling of 78.6% (highest among four seats) Dakha saw a turnout of 71.6%. The polling percentage in Mukerian and Phagwara was 59% and 55.9%, respectively.
Officials said the polling percentage will change as the data was being tabulated. The opposition Shiromani Akali Dal said one of their workers was injured in a firing incident in Dakha.
The election commission issued notices to three Congress leaders, including Ludhiana MP Ravneet Bittu, Zira MLA Kulbir Singh and party’s Phagwara candidate Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal,
for violating poll code. Dakha SAD candidate Manpreet Singh Ayali also got EC notice for taking to the social media platform to seek votes.
“The polling was peaceful,” Punjab chief electoral officer S Karuna Raju said. SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema claimed that a party activist was shot at when he tried to stop Congress workers from casting bogus votes”. The EC directed Ludhiana DIG to take over supervision of the model code of conduct and other security measures from the SSP (rural) in Dakha assembly constituency. The Akali Dal has lodged a complaint against the SSP (rural) and sought that he be replaced.
THE SC COMMUNITY OF RAI SIKH COMPRISES 35% VOTERS IN THE CONSTITUENCY. THEY ARE KNOWN FOR VOTING EN BLOC, EVEN RECORDING A TURNOUT OF 90%
BATHINDA: In polling that saw two skirmishes and a disruption at a booth after Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate, Raj Singh Dibbipura, charged a Congress agent with attempting to bribe voters, Jalalabad saw a turnout of 78.8% (1.62 lakh) of 2.05 lakh voters till 7.30pm on Monday. This was the highest among all four seats. This, however, was lower than 86.9% turnout that the constituency recorded in 2017 assembly polls.
The bypoll was necessitated after Sukhbir Singh Badal resigned as MLA, following his victory from the Ferozepur Lok Sabha constituency in May.
BRISK POLLING: RAI SIKHS HOLD KEY
Political analysts say the Rai Sikh community, a Scheduled Caste, comprises 35% voters in the constituency.
The community is known for voting en bloc, even recording a turnout of 90%.
Analysts add that the polling pattern of the community plays an important role in deciding electoral fortunes. Sources in
SAD said Sukhbir nurtured the constituency into a party stronghold.
“When Sukhbir became the deputy CM after winning from Jalalabad in 2009, he took extra care to develop the seat. His political strategy of focusing on Rai Sikhs was evident in the recent parliamentary election results where he managed an impressive electoral margin from villages of Rai Sikhs. This was even as former MLA from here, Sher Singh Ghubaya, who made way for Sukhbir in 2009, was contesting as a Congress candidate,” said a close aide of the SAD chief.
“The community is spread out in rural areas. It will be interesting to see who managed to woo Rai Sikhs,” says an analyst.
PROBE ON INTO SAD ALLEGATION
Fazilka SSP Bhupinder Singh said investigation was on into Dibbipura’s allegation that related to polling booth number 30 at Shivalik Public School. The SAD candidate had claimed that Ramesh Kumar, a booth agent of Congress nominee Raminder Awla, was trying to influence voters.
In other incidents, Congress and Akali workers entered into a heated argument at the Jalalabad market committee office; at a polling booth at the block development office, SAD’S tent was uprooted in a clash with Congress workers.
2ND BYPOLL IN 10 YEARS
Over the past 10 years starting 2009, this was the second by-poll in the constituency. In 2007, Ghubaya was elected as MLA, but he had to vacate the seat after Sukhbir decided to enter Punjab’s electoral politics in 2009, when the SAD-BJP was in power in the state. Bypolls were held that year and Sukhbir won by 80,000 votes. In 2012 assembly elections, he won by 52,240 votes; in 2017, the margin fell to 18,500 votes.