Home India Politics Tens of thousands vote in Punjab

Tens of thousands vote in Punjab

By IANS,

Chandigarh: Heavy voting took place Monday in by-elections to three Punjab assembly seats including one where Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal is seeking election.

Over 75 percent voting was recorded in Jalalabad, Kahnuwan and Banur constituencies. The by-election in Jalalabad is crucial for Badal who is pitted against former minister and Congress candidate Hans Raj Josan.

Badal junior resigned as Punjab deputy chief minister last month after he failed to fulfil the constitutional requirement of getting elected to the assembly within six months of being sworn in as a minister in the Akali Dal government.

“At all three seats we recorded around 75 percent voting,” an election official told IANS.

Seventy-four percent of 184,000 voters in Banur exercised their franchise. The number was 75 percent of 166,000 voters in Jalalabad and 79 percent of 124,000 voters in Kahnuwan.

In Banur near Chandigarh, Akali Dal’s Jasjit Singh ‘Bunny’ is pitted against Deepinder Singh Dhillon of the Congress.

Bunny’s father and former Punjab minister Kanwaljit Singh, a Akali leader, represented the Banur seat in Mohali district till his death in March this year.

There were 21 candidates in the fray in the three seats. Counting of votes will take place Thursday.