Fierce Contest in Punjab: Municipal Elections Heat Up

Punjab's municipal elections see four major political parties—AAP, Congress, BJP, and SAD—competing for dominance. Elections will occur in five municipal corporations and 44 councils. With 3,336 candidates, the polls are a critical test for AAP, Congress, BJP, and SAD, affecting their political standings.

The upcoming municipal elections in Punjab are shaping up to be a fiercely contested affair, with major parties including the AAP, Congress, BJP, and Shiromani Akali Dal all vying for political dominance. The polls are scheduled for Saturday and will cover five major municipal corporations, namely Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala, and Phagwara, along with 44 municipal councils and nagar panchayats. Voting will occur from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. with electronic voting machines, and counting will begin immediately afterward.

Officials report that 3,336 candidates will compete in the civic polls, distributed across 3,809 polling booths. The municipal corporations have varying numbers of wards, with Amritsar and Jalandhar each having 85, while Ludhiana, Patiala, and Phagwara have 95, 60, and 50 wards, respectively. A total of 598 wards belong to municipal councils and nagar panchayats.

The elections are a litmus test for the ruling AAP, eager to maintain its momentum following its success in recent assembly bypolls. Simultaneously, the Congress aims to reclaim influence, having held a majority in several municipal corporations. Accusations of misuse of state machinery have been traded, underscoring the election's high stakes. The BJP is testing its solo electoral strength, and the Shiromani Akali Dal seeks to regain footing after skipping the recent bypolls.

(With inputs from agencies.)