Voters in the Jalandhar West Assembly constituency headed to the polls last week to elect a new representative. Yesterday marked D-day as officials began counting the votes cast in the multi-candidate race. As the counting progressed through the day, candidates from the key political parties involved held their breath waiting for the final result.
The bypoll saw over 15 candidates in contention, but the main competition was pitched between the state’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the opposition Congress, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). With all eyes on Jalandhar for the outcome, hopefuls from these three major parties anxiously awaited the verdict from voters.
The AAP leadership expressed optimism about repeating their Assembly election win here. However, rivals Congress and BJP noted that even a narrow AAP victory would represent a moral defeat after the heavy campaigning efforts made. Congress leader Charanjit Channi attributed a lower voter turnout to alleged misuse of power by AAP. Meanwhile, BJP state president Sunil Jakhar said the Chief Minister’s extensive personal involvement showed the party took locals’ support for granted.
As counting neared completion, winners and losers would soon emerge from this litmus test poll. But through the daylong process, contenders kept their fingers crossed, hoping Fate would favor their candidacy. Jalandhar residents have now had their say through democratic methods. Once all valid votes are tallied, their chosen representative will take the Assembly seat.
