Cong sweeps Punjab ZP polls, leading in majority panchayat samitis

Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, September 22

The ruling Congress in Punjab swept all 22 zila parishad zones, while trends placed it in pole position in 147 panchayat samitis as the counting started on Saturday. 

With only two panchayat samitis — Majitha and Jalandhar Cantt — in its kitty, the Shiromani Akali Dal appears to have a got drubbing in the local body elections. 

A final round of counting was under way in Lambi and Jalalabad — assembly segments that Akali patriarch Parkash Singh Badal and party president Sukhbir Singh Badal, respectively, respresent. 

Among prominent winners in zila parishad elections were former SGPC president Bibi Jagjir Kaur’s daughter Ranjit Kaur, who won from Nangal Lubana, Housing Minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa’s son Ravi Nandan Singh Bajwa, who took Wadala Granthian, Congress MLA from Khadoor Sahib Ramanjit Sikki's son-in-law Maninderjit Singh Mani from Ramidi and former Congress MLA Kawaljit Singh Lally's son Mehtab Singh from Patara in Adampur constituency.

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh congratulated his party on their victory saying people had endorsed the positive development and rejected the Akalis’ “malicious campaign”.

Highlights:

Panchayat Samiti results in Punjab:

Total seats 199

*Amritsar: Panchayat Samitis: Results declared 16: Congress 12, SAD 4

*Patiala: Panchayat Samitis: Congress 91, SAD 7, BJP 1

*Bathinda: Panchayat Samitis: Results declared 10: Congress 7, SAD 2, Ind 1

*Ludhiana: Zila Parishad: Total 25 zones; Results declared 14; Congress 14

*Ludhiana: Panchayat Samitis: Total 236; zones; Contested 229; Unopposed 7; Results declared 185; Congress 154; SAD 18; Independents 3

*Congress wins 12 of 22 zones in panchayat samitis of Nawanshahr

*Akalis suffer massive defeat on home turf of Muktsar as the Congress wins 10 of the 13 Zila Parishad zones

*Congress hold complete sway in Gurdaspur. Of the total 213 panchayat samiti zones the Congress wins 154 and leads in the rest. In Zila Parishad, the Congress wins 15 of the 25 seats and leads in the rest

*Hoshiarpur: Panchayat Samitis: Total seats 211; Results declared 38, Congress 34, SAD 3, BJP 1

*Sangrur: Panchayat Samitis: Congress 7, SAD 1

*Congress has bagged all five seats in Ropar the results of which were declared till 1 pm.

*Jalandhar: Congress wins 20 of 21 ZP zones; one independent candidate wins.