The results of the rural local body polls in Punjab brought cheers for the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), came as a relief for the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and left the BJP disappointed, even as the Opposition parties accused the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government of “excesses”.
The principal Opposition Congress, which finished a distant runner-up, claimed that these polls were “no barometer to check the popularity of the government”.
The panchayat poll results also renewed the buzz over a possible alliance between the Akali Dal and the BJP.
Calling the results a “grand victory” ahead of the 2027 Assembly polls, the AAP said they indicated “lack of anti-incumbency even after nearly four years in power” in the state.
The Sukhbir Badal-led SAD, which is trying to revive itself after being plagued by factionalism and infighting for a long time, claimed that the results showed the party was “inching towards victory in the 2027 Assembly polls”.
A total of 347 zila parishads and 2,838 panchayat samitis across the state went to the polls with ballot papers on December 14 with the counting of votes starting Wednesday.
The final poll results, which came Thursday, showed that the AAP bagged 218 zila parishads while the Congress and the SAD won 62 and 46 respectively. The BJP got just seven while the BSP won three. Ten Independents also won the district panchayats polls. The results for 346 zila parishads were declared with the election not taking place in Khadoor Sahib, where the nominations filed by all candidates were declared invalid.
Also, the AAP bagged 1,531 panchayat or block samitis while the Congress and the SAD won 612 and 445 respectively. The BJP emerged victorious in 73 panchayat samitis, while the BSP and Independents won 28 and 144 respectively.
Hailing his party’s victory, AAP national convener Arvind Kjriwal said, “The results show that the AAP has swept the polls by winning almost 70% of the zila parishads and block samitis. It indicates that there is a wave in favour of the AAP and people approve of the works by the Bhagwant Mann government. Unlike in 2013 and 2018, when rural local body polls were held immediately after the Assembly polls, this time they happened four years after we came to power.”
However, several AAP candidates lost in the strongholds of some senior party leaders. In Sandhwan, Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan’s village, the SAD defeated the AAP by 171 votes.
In CM Mann’s home turf in Sangrur, the AAP candidate lost the block samiti polls in party MP Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer’s village to the SAD, while in Bharaj, the native village of AAP MLA Narinder Kaur Bharaj, the party lost to the Congress.
The Congress, which finished runner-up, alleged the “misuse of machinery” by the AAP. “The AAP can claim victory, but they know in their heart that these polls mean nothing. The ruling party wins these polls… Also, you saw what happened before the elections. Opposition candidates were not allowed to file nomination papers. There are many places where the margin is between five and 100 votes,” Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said.
Senior Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa, also slammed the AAP’s “high-handedness” while accusing the Mann government of “reducing grassroots democracy to a deeply flawed and discouraging exercise”.
The SAD could take heart from the point that it has made a comeback in the crucial Malwa region, once seen to be its stronghold, three years after its disastrous showing in the 2022 Assembly polls, in which the party was reduced to just three seats.
While it won 13 of the 17 zila parishads in Bathinda, the SAD won seven of 13 in Muktsar, four of 11 in Mansa and half of the 10 in Faridkot
“In Faridkot, we lost one zila parishad seat with a narrow margin of 141 votes. Else, we would have won six zila parishads. We will be able to install zila parishad chairpersons in three districts – Faridkot, Bathinda and Mukstar – despite being in the Opposition,” senior SAD leader Parambans Bunty Romana said, adding that victory in even a few seats sends out a “loud and clear” message.
SAD spokesperson Daljeet Singh Cheema attributed the party’s performance to its “ability to gauge the mood of the voters”. “We won despite government pressure. We all saw how democracy was made a casualty in the elections. There was also invisible pressure. Sarpanches were warned of vigilance inquiries if their villages voted for the Opposition. The ground reality is different from what meets the eye,” he added.
The results threw up a mixed bag for the BJP, which increased its tally from two to seven in zila parishads and from 63 to 73 in block samitis.
The BJP put up a good showing in some of its traditional bastions even as it slipped in other areas.
In Pathankot, state BJP working president Ashwani Kumar’s home turf, the BJP won four out of 10 zila parishads and 20 of 60 block samitis. The party also saw some gains in Faridkot and Tarn Taran, where it won one block samiti seat each.
In Patiala, the home district of former CM Captain Amarinder Singh, the BJP fared poorly, winning only one of the 184 block samiti seats and failing to win any of the 23 zila parishad seats.
“The results show that Amarinder was right in suggesting that the BJP needs the SAD to form a stable government in 2027. Many in the BJP did not like his remark but the results say it all. The party is becoming weaker in its strongholds as it tries to expand,” a senior BJP leader said.
Romana, however, dismissed speculations over a possible SAD-BJP alliance. “We are focused on our strengths and weaknesses. An alliance is not in our minds as we have bounced back in 27 Assembly constituencies of the Malwa region,” he said.
Admitting that the numbers were not in the BJP’s favour, state party general secretary Anil Sarin said the party was happy that “it could reach out to every village of the state”. “We are focused on all 117 Assembly seats for the 2027 polls,” he added.
