Sanjeev Arora Takes Lead in Ludhiana West Bypoll

AAP candidate Sanjeev Arora leads Ludhiana West assembly bypoll with a margin of 2,286 votes, surpassing Congress rival Bharat Bhushan Ashu. Despite leading in early rounds, Ashu was overtaken by the resurgent Arora. The bypoll was prompted by the death of MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi.

In the closely watched Ludhiana West assembly bypoll, AAP candidate Sanjeev Arora has emerged as the frontrunner, securing a lead of 2,286 votes over Congress counterpart Bharat Bhushan Ashu. The data was revealed by the Election Commission on Monday.

Arora garnered 14,486 votes, maintaining dominance in the overall count, although rival Ashu briefly took the lead during the fourth, fifth, and sixth rounds. Meanwhile, BJP's Jiwan Gupta claimed the third position with 10,703 votes, after briefly surpassing Ashu. The Shiromani Akali Dal's Parupkar Singh Ghuman trailed behind in fourth place with 3,283 votes.

The bypoll saw 14 contenders vying for the seat, necessitated by the passing of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi earlier this year. Conducted at the Khalsa College for Women, the polling recorded a turnout of 51.33%, a noticeable decline from the 64% in the previous state election.

(With inputs from agencies.)