Chandigarh June 10:
Today elections to the four municipal corporations of Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala and Amritsar will be fought with the Shiromani Akali Dal enjoying an edge over its rivals.
The ruling alliance managed to stick to its agenda of development throughout the campaign period in spite of the opposition Congress levelling allegations of harassment and brow beating at the hands of the administration.
The ineffective approach of the state election commission in checking corrupt practices during the election process has also been viewed as an advantage for the ruling alliance, as was the Congress charge of the election commission turning a deaf ear to their complaints. So, the elections will be held amidst tight security, beginning at 8 am and ending at 4 pm.
In a majority of seats, the ruling SAD-BJP alliance and the Congress are pitted against each other in a direct contest. Though People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) too have fielded their candidates, they are not being viewed with much seriousness.
While the SAD-BJP alliance has been working on a one-point agenda of repeating its win of Assembly elections, the candidates of opposition Congress have also not spared any effort to regain i ts lost glory by increasing their tally in comparison to the last elections. In fact, Akali Dal has adopted an “aggressive” approach in these MC elections, seemingly with the aim to strengthen its urban vote bank in view of the coming Lok Sabha elections.
Sources said the SAD was trying to decrease its dependence on the BJP in the cities, adding the former’s move to appease the hardliners on setting up Operation Bluestar memorial was a clear indication in this regard. Though the BJP had reacted sharply to the development, the Akali Dal had down played the issue for obvious reasons. The two warring sides have been totally divided as far as the issues for the civic polls are concerned.
While the alliance partners have stuck to their development agenda, the Congress has only been able to project the SADBJP rule as anti-people. The seriousness of the two sides also differed. While Akali Dal president and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal ensured that a majority of party rebels withdrew their candidature, the Congress could only suspend its rebel candidates, thus affecting the prospects of its official candidates.
The Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh, presumably allowed to stay at the helm of affairs by the high command till the civic body elections, was only seen highlighting the issue of alleged vendetta politics and use of money power to lure the Congress candidates. However, his absence from rallies in support of party candidates has rankled many, to the extent that many candidates chose to join hands with the Akali Dal. The performance of Congress candidates in these polls is likely to decide the fate of Capt Amarinder Singh, whose detractors had squarely blamed him for the party’s defeat in the Assembly polls.
Today elections to the four municipal corporations of Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala and Amritsar will be fought with the Shiromani Akali Dal enjoying an edge over its rivals.
The ruling alliance managed to stick to its agenda of development throughout the campaign period in spite of the opposition Congress levelling allegations of harassment and brow beating at the hands of the administration.
The ineffective approach of the state election commission in checking corrupt practices during the election process has also been viewed as an advantage for the ruling alliance, as was the Congress charge of the election commission turning a deaf ear to their complaints. So, the elections will be held amidst tight security, beginning at 8 am and ending at 4 pm.
In a majority of seats, the ruling SAD-BJP alliance and the Congress are pitted against each other in a direct contest. Though People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) too have fielded their candidates, they are not being viewed with much seriousness.
While the SAD-BJP alliance has been working on a one-point agenda of repeating its win of Assembly elections, the candidates of opposition Congress have also not spared any effort to regain i ts lost glory by increasing their tally in comparison to the last elections. In fact, Akali Dal has adopted an “aggressive” approach in these MC elections, seemingly with the aim to strengthen its urban vote bank in view of the coming Lok Sabha elections.
Sources said the SAD was trying to decrease its dependence on the BJP in the cities, adding the former’s move to appease the hardliners on setting up Operation Bluestar memorial was a clear indication in this regard. Though the BJP had reacted sharply to the development, the Akali Dal had down played the issue for obvious reasons. The two warring sides have been totally divided as far as the issues for the civic polls are concerned.
While the alliance partners have stuck to their development agenda, the Congress has only been able to project the SADBJP rule as anti-people. The seriousness of the two sides also differed. While Akali Dal president and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal ensured that a majority of party rebels withdrew their candidature, the Congress could only suspend its rebel candidates, thus affecting the prospects of its official candidates.
The Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh, presumably allowed to stay at the helm of affairs by the high command till the civic body elections, was only seen highlighting the issue of alleged vendetta politics and use of money power to lure the Congress candidates. However, his absence from rallies in support of party candidates has rankled many, to the extent that many candidates chose to join hands with the Akali Dal. The performance of Congress candidates in these polls is likely to decide the fate of Capt Amarinder Singh, whose detractors had squarely blamed him for the party’s defeat in the Assembly polls.
