Trounced in LS polls, winner a month later: How AAP prevailed in Jalandhar Assembly bypoll

While AAP candidate Mohinder Bhagat is known to have a deep-rooted connection with the electorate, the BJP and Congress candidates were involved in controversies while the SAD’s pick got caught in an internal rift.

The AAP chose Mohinder Bhagat, a former BJP man with deep-rooted connections in the constituency who unsuccessfully contested the 2017 and 2022 Assembly polls to lead the charge. (Photo: X)

From losing the Jalandhar Lok Sabha seat to the Congress to scripting a dramatic turnaround in the Jalandhar West bypoll a month later, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) played its cards right, with caste equations seemingly working in its favour. The ruling party in Punjab won the bypoll with the highest-ever margin of 37,325 votes.

The AAP chose Mohinder Bhagat, a former BJP man with deep-rooted connections in the constituency who unsuccessfully contested the 2017 and 2022 Assembly polls to lead the charge. Mohinder is the son of former three-time MLA and BJP minister Chuni Lal, who has been a notable figure in the area since the 1990s.

The bypoll was necessitated by the defection and subsequent resignation of former AAP MLA Sheetal Angural who contested on a BJP ticket. However, his campaign was marred with controversies, including allegations of involvement in drug trafficking and illegal lottery schemes. In the Lok Sabha polls, it was the BJP that led in the Jalandhar West Assembly segment, polling 44,394 votes while the Congress received 42,837 votes respectively. The AAP managed to poll only 15,629 votes in the segment in the parliamentary elections.

“The rapid shift in voter sentiment in favour of the AAP underscores the significance of strategic candidate selection and community engagement in shaping the electoral outcomes. Bhagat benefited from his family’s long-standing political presence, established reputation (as a leader), and familiarity with local issues. Meanwhile, Angural’s base in the constituency dwindled due to the controversies. His allegations of corruption against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s kin without any evidence did little to bolster his position,” said political expert Sat Paul Virdi, a well-known name in the area.

The Congress fielded four-time councillor and former senior Deputy Mayor Surinder Kaur, whose visibility and influence seemed limited to her ward. Observers pointed to corruption allegations during Surinder’s tenure and accusations of discrepancies in purchases of land against her son Karan, which she could not effectively counter. This, they said, derailed her campaign. The party also appeared overconfident following its good showing in the recent Lok Sabha elections in which it won seven of the state’s 13 seats. AAP leaders alleged that during her tenure as councillor, Kaur’s office always remained “closed”.

Though the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the BSP too were in the fray, with two-time councillor Surjit Kaur and first-time contestant Binder Kumar Lakha respectively, the contest was touted to be between the BJP, the Congress and the AAP. The SAD initially distanced itself from Surjit, citing her proximity to “rebel” leaders such as former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief Bibi Jagir Kaur and former MLA Gurpartap Singh Wadala. Surjit’s party-hopping — she joined the AAP on July 3 only to return to the SAD the same evening — dented her prospects. The SAD officially supported Lakha despite Surjit contesting on the party’s “takdi (scale)” symbol.

With one of the lowest turnouts in the state since 1977 — 54.98% — the outcome of the by-election hinged largely on the Bhagat community, which constitutes nearly 22% of the 1.72 lakh electorate. The influence of the Bhagat community, to which the AAP candidate belongs, was significant despite the presence of a large number of Ravidassia and Valmiki voters in the constituency. While Bhagat received a large chunk of votes from his community, the votes of the Ravidassia community, to which both Angural and Surinder belong, appeared to have split.

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Even during the election campaign, Rajesh Bhagat — a retired additional superintendent engineer and currently the Mahant of the Punjab Kabir Chaura Math Mulgadi Sidhpeeth Kashi Banaras — urged the community to vote for Bhagat, emphasising the importance of voting as a bloc.

One of the 39 communities falling under the Scheduled Caste (SC) category, the Bhagat community seems to have consolidated in favour of the AAP after Mann last month announced the setting up of a “Bhagat Kabir Dham” in Hoshiarpur to honour Bhagat Kabir’s 626th Parkash Utsav.

Originally from Sialkot in Pakistan, the Bhagat community in Jalandhar West is predominantly engaged in the sports industry and follows the Kabir Panth philosophy. It is spread across various districts such as Gurdaspur, Batala, Amritsar, Pathankot, Ludhiana, Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar.