E-Paper
Ludhiana: Congress gains in rural, semi-urban belts, BJP does well in urban areas
Of his tally of 3,22,224 votes, Warring garnered over 1 lakh votes from the semi-urban assembly segments of Dakha, Jagraon and Gill
Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, who emerged victorious from the Ludhiana Lok Sabha segment, gained considerable support in the rural and semi-urban belts of the constituency. Raja Warring’s closest competitor, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate and sitting MP Ravneet Bittu, polled 20,942 votes less than him. Bittu, however, gained significant ground in the urban areas of the region.
Of his tally of 3,22,224 votes, Warring garnered over 1 lakh votes from the semi-urban assembly segments of Dakha, Jagraon and Gill. However, the votes from the rural areas decisively tilted the contest in his favour.
Bittu managed around 49,000 votes from the rural belts, falling short of Warring’s impressive tally. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Ashok Parashar Pappi also had considerable support, getting approximately 95,000 votes from these areas.
According to the information shared by the district election office, Warring secured a majority of the votes in rural areas, including Dakha, Jagraon and Gill. Bittu’s performance stood out in the Ludhiana North assembly segment, where he got majority support with 53,925 votes.
Congress got 54,981 votes in Gill, 40,276 in Dakha and 34,734 in Jagraon assembly segment. The AAP secured 41,520 votes in Gill, 28,743 in Dakha and 25,745 in Jagraon assembly constituency. BJP’s Bittu got 30,154 in Gill, 7,072 in Dakha and 12,138 in Jagraon assembly constituencies. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate Ranjit Singh Dhillon got 16,985 in Gill, 21,776 in Dakha and 12,752 in Jagraon.
The BJP lost out in the rural areas, which was waiting to happen as many villages had not allowed the saffron party to even set up booths in the run-up to the elections. In the state at large, there was angst against the BJP after the farmer protests.
The SAD, who earlier enjoyed a good showing in rural areas, fared poorly this time. Both the BJP and the SAD could only secure close to 50,000 votes each.
Warring’s victory in the rural belts highlights the Congress’ deep-rooted influence and effective campaign strategies, which played a pivotal role in his electoral success, those aware of the developments said.
