Block samiti and zila parishad polls: Punjab logs 48% turnout
Elections were held to elect members of 347 zones of 22 zila parishads and 2,838 zones of 153 panchayat samitis. Over 9,000 candidates were in the fray, and a total of 1.36 crore voters were eligible to cast their ballots.
Chandigarh/Sangrur/Jalandhar/Bathinda/Patiala:
With a voter turnout of 48%, the lowest for rural elections in the post-militancy era, polling for the block samiti and zila parishad elections concluded peacefully across the state, barring minor skirmishes in some areas. In the last block samiti and zila parishad elections, held in 2018, the voting percentage was recorded at 58.1%.
The exact figures related to the voting percentage will be updated after the polling parties submit records with their respective returning officers, the state election commission (SEC) said.
Elections were held to elect members of 347 zones of 22 zila parishads and 2,838 zones of 153 panchayat samitis. Over 9,000 candidates were in the fray, and a total of 1.36 crore voters were eligible to cast their ballots.
According to the SEC statement, repolling has been ordered in the block samiti Attari, booths no. 52,53,54,55 and zone no 17 (Varpal Kalan) (Booth no. 90,91,93,94,95) in district Amritsar; block samiti Chananwal (Zone No. 04), Village Raisar Patiala (Booth No. 20), District Barnala; Village Babania (Booths No. 63 and 64), and Village Madhir (Booths No. 21 and 22) in Block Kot Bhai, Gidderbaha in District Muktsar, Village Chanhiya (Polling Station 124) in Gurdaspur district and Pollling Booth 72, Panchayat Samiti Bhogpur (Zone No. 4) in Jalandhar district.
Repolling will take place on December 16 between 8 am and 4pm. The counting of votes will take place on December 17.
Additionally, as per reports, the voters in Bhairo Harni, Saidpur Harni, Haveli Harni, Raichak, Faizulla Chak and Mallian Faikran of Kahnuwan Zone No. 9 were wrongly issued ballot papers meant for Tibber Zone No. 8 in Gurdaspur district, resulting in a delay of nearly two hours in polling.
Chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann cast his vote in Sangrur, while several other prominent leaders, including heads of opposition parties, stood in queues to cast their votes. Polling remained peaceful in the Doaba region comprising four districts—Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Jalandhar and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar. Till 4pm, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar recorded a voting of 46.47%, while 46% of voters cast their franchise in Kapurthala district, followed by 44.6% in Jalandhar and 43.3% in Hoshiarpur.
Repolling in Barnala booth
Repolling has been announced for booth number 20 at Raisar Patiala village, in the Mehal Kalan block of Barnala, following a controversy over misprinted ballot papers for the block samiti elections. Additional deputy commissioner (ADC) Amit Bambi said, “We requested the SEC to announce the fresh date for repolling after the first set of ballot papers were misprinted.” The controversy erupted when voters discovered the SAD’s election symbol ‘takdi’, was missing from the ballot papers of candidate Gurpreet Kaur Dhaliwal. Bachittar Singh, the sarpanch of Raisar Patiala village, alleged foul play. In Sangrur’s Bhindran village, a scuffle broke out between the Congress and AAP workers outside the polling booth. Congress alleged voters intimidation by AAP, which DSP Sukhdev Singh refuted and said that a patrolling team was there, and no untoward thing happened.
2 villages in Giderbaha to vote again
The polling in the South Malwa belt also concluded amid allegations of booth capturing and skirmishes at a few places. Following allegations of booth capturing in the villages of Gidderbaha, a high-stakes assembly segment in Muktsar district, the SEC ordered re-polling at Babania and Madhir villages. The opposition parties levelled allegations of political interference by the ruling dispensation of the AAP in Gidderbaha. Congress state unit chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and the SAD blamed the AAP leader Sandeep Singh Sunny Dhillon, brother of the Gidderbaha MLA, Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon, for leading a mob for booth capturing at various places.
Muktsar SSP Abhimanyu Rana said on Sunday evening that no complaint was received by the district police department about the booth capturing.
Sunny Dhillon denied the charges. In a video posted on his Facebook page, Dhillon said, “I did not even enter any polling booth. It seems the AAP storm has hit once again. You can see the heavy rush at our party’s polling booths in villages.”
Polling in Bathinda, Mansa and Moga remained peaceful. As per the district administration, Bathinda recorded 49.7% polling till 4 pm, whereas in Faridkot it was 48%. Mansa district witnessed 56.2% polling today.
‘Booth capturing’ allegation in Patiala
Amid sporadic reports of booth capturing in the district, the polling remained largely peaceful in Patiala. Patiala recorded a voter turnout of 44.3% across 169 zones of 10 panchayat samitis and 23 zones of the zila parishad.
In Jansua village of Shambhu block, unidentified individuals allegedly attempted to capture a polling booth to cast fake votes. Congress candidate Inderjeet Singh alleged that people associated with the ruling AAP had cast 30–40 fake votes in favour of their candidate. A senior district administration official said the presiding officer had noted the ballot numbers of the illegally polled votes, which were subsequently declared invalid. Similar incidents of alleged booth capturing were reported from Behru village of Sanour block, Saidkheri, Madanpur and Mandwal villages.
SEC failed to do its duty: Cong
The opposition parties targeted the ruling Aam Aadmi Party for the low voter turnout and termed it as “a vote of no confidence in the electoral process.”
Leader of the opposition, Partap Singh Bajwa, said the low voter turnout across Punjab is not accidental, but a direct consequence of what he described as Manish Sisodia’s ‘Saam, Daam, Dand, Bhed’ model being openly replicated in the state. “When people witness pressure, manipulation, intimidation and blatant misuse of the administration, they lose faith in the sanctity of elections. Choosing not to vote becomes a silent protest against a police-managed and compromised electoral process under the AAP government,” he said. He further alleged that the SEC is facing a credibility crisis. Punjab Congress chief Warring also accused the ruling Aam Aadmi Party of gross and blatant electoral malpractices during the polls. “They (AAP) have gone a step ahead of their mentors in the BJP who are known for vote chori,” he said.
AAP has stolen elections: SAD
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) demanded a judicial probe into the functioning of the SEC and also accused the AAP of stealing the elections in league with the SEC and the Punjab Police. Demanding a judicial probe into the functioning of the SEC, party leader Daljit Cheema said, “The SEC has not only failed to conduct the panchayati raj institution elections fairly but has become a hatchet of the AAP. This has eroded the faith of Punjabis in grassroots democracy, and urgent corrective steps are needed to rectify this situation.”
