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Punjab byelection: AAP’s Mohinder Bhagat wins Jalandhar West seat
Defeats Sheetal Angural, who had quit as AAP legislator in March to join BJP, by 37,725 votes; shot in arm for Bhagwant Mann-led AAP in state after below par Lok Sabha outcome.
In a major boost to the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) after the Lok Sabha election debacle in Punjab, its nominee Mohinder Bhagat won the Jalandhar West byelection by 37,725 votes. With the landslide victory, the AAP retained the seat.
Bhagat, the son of former cabinet minister and BJP veteran Chunni Lal Bhagat, polled 55,246 votes, while Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Sheetal Angural bagged 17,921 votes and Congress’ Surinder Kaur got 16,757 votes. Shiromani Akali Dal candidate Surjit Kaur polled 1,242 votes and BSP’s Binder Kumar Lakha got 734 votes.
Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann led the AAP campaign and went all out to win the bypoll. Mann’s leadership was being questioned after the AAP managed to win only three of the 13 in Lok Sabha seats in Punjab in June. To ensure the AAP retained the seat, Mann not only spearheaded Mohinder Bhagat’s campaign but also acted as his poll manager and strategist. He shifted to Jalandhar following the announcement of the bypoll and ensured all his MLAs and MPs were stationed in all 23 wards in the constituency.
The byelection was necessitated after Angural quit as AAP MLA in March in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections.
Mohinder Bhagat, who had contested unsuccessfully from this segment in 2017 and 2022, maintained the lead in all 13 rounds of counting.
Jalandhar West saw a 54.98% voter turnout on July 10. The AAP got 58.39% of the votes, while the BJP got 18.94% of votes, the Congress 17.71% and the Shiromani Akali Dal 1.31% of votes.
Setback for BJP, Congress
The election result came as a setback to both the BJP and the Congress.
In last month’s Lok Sabha elections, former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi of the Congress defeated BJP’s Sushil Kumar Rinku by 1.75 lakh votes. The party got a lead of 1,557 votes in Jalandhar West. Channi polled 44,394 votes, while Rinku got 42,837 votes and AAP’s Pawan Kumar Tinu 15,629 votes.
The AAP secured a landslide victory in 2022 and its candidate Angural defeaterd Congress’ Rinku by 4,253 votes.
During the AAP campaign, Mann addressed 25 public gatherings and roadshows in which he maintained that he is committed to running the state government for two days from Jalandhar so that people of Doaba and Majha need not to go to Chandigarh for routine work. Another factor that went in AAP’ favour is that Mann and other MLAs and MPs remained on the ground throughout, targeting Angural and Rinku for betraying the party and people of Jalandhar West. Mann also promised that if elected, Bhagat would be made cabinet minister.
Lesson for turncoats: Sanjay Singh
Bhagat said his win is the victory of people. “I will ensure that all promises made during the campaign related to the development of Jalandhar West will be fulfilled. I am thankful to Punjab CM Mann for showing interest in me,” he said.
Sharing a picture of Rinku and Angural, both of who switched from the AAP to the BJP, Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh said that the people of Jalandhar had taught them a lesson for betraying the party.
Embarrassment for SAD
The results came as an embarrassment for the Shiromani Akali Dal as its candidate Surjit Kaur polled only 1,242 votes. She was supported by SAD’s rebel group after party president Sukhbir Singh Badal withdrew support to her and chose to back the Bahujan Samaj Party. BSP candidate Lakha got only 734 votes.
