Gurdaspur bypoll: Congress wins Lok Sabha seat, claims victory mandate over policies of PM Narendra Modi

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh with winning candidate Sunil Jakhar in Chandigarh on Sunday. (Express Photo: Kamleshwar Singh)

Congress candidate Sunil Jakhar has won the Gurdaspur by-election with huge margin of 1,93,219 votes defeating Bhartiya Janta Party candidate Sawarn Singh Salaria.

Jakhar got 4,99,752 votes against 3,06,553 votes casted for runner up Salaria. AAP candidate Suresh Khajuria couldn’t save his security deposit with a total of 23,579 votes that he got.

Jakhar’s victory margin is also huge as voter turnout was only 56% against 70% witnessed in 2014 polls on the same seat when Vinod Khanna defeated Congress candidate Partap Singh Bajwa with a margin of 1.36 lakh votes. Seat was vacant after Khanna’s death earlier this year.

The record for biggest margin of victory on this seat uptil now was with former Congress MP Sukhbans Kaur Bhinder who won with a margin of 1.51 lakh votes in 1980.

Jakhar won all 10 assembly constituencies that fall in Gurdaspur parliamentary seat which was won by BJP candidate Vinod Khanna in 2014. Congress had won eight of these ten seats in 2017 assembly elections.

Dera Baba Nanak assembly constituency turned out to be an advantage for Congress party as it’s candidate won it with a handsome margin of 44,074 votes.

SEE PHOTOS | Gurdaspur bypoll 2017: See how the Congress celebrated its record win

Shiromani Akali Dal’s former cabinet minister Sucha Singh Langah had contested unsuccessfully from Dera Baba Nanak constituency in 2012 and 2017 assembly elections. He was booked in a rape case on September 28, just at the start of election campaign of Gurdaspur parliamentary by-election. The attention of the whole campaign shifted to his alleged crime.

BJP had won Sujanpur assembly constituency in the 2017 Punjab assembly elections as its candidate Dinesh Singh had defeated Congress candidate Amit Singh by 18,701 votes. Jakhar, however, got lead of 6,701 votes from Sujanpur in the result declared on Sunday.

Shiromani Akali Dal candidate Lakhbir Singh Lodhinangal had also won Batala seat by votes in 2017 assembly elections. Jakhar, however, got handsome lead of 26255 votes from Batala.

Gurdaspur is a Hindu dominating parliamentary constituency and the Congress candidate had also asked for votes for the alleged falliure of Union government on demonisation and GST issues.

Congress candidate was always a favorite in this election, however, the big margin of victory could turn out to be an embarrassment for BJP.

After winning elections, Jakhar said “I had said it from the very first day that this election will be a mandate on the policies of Union government led by Modi. People have vent their anger against demonitisation and GST by making me an MP with a huge margin of votes. I had asked people to vote for me against BJP’s economic and communal agenda. People have responded to my call and it has sent a clear message to the Union government on behalf of the whole country that people are fed up of its policies and it is time for change.”

He said “This election is also a victory for the development agenda of Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh-led state government. The waiver of farmers loan and steps to revive the economy of Punjab. People have honoured Congress government for work done in the last six months in the state.”

BJP candidate Salaria said, “I congratulate Sunil Jakhar on his victory. At the same time, everyone knows that Congress has won this election by rigging. Government machinery was misused to influence voters. All the officials were given targets. There was a clear warning for the people that they would be implicated in false police cases if they vote for BJP.”

AAP candidate Khajuria repeated party’s stand on EVMs. “Congress has done everything to win this election. They have tampered with EVM machines. They have used the police to keep voters at home.”

Meanwhile Punjab Cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu attempted to shift the blame of BJPs defeat on Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal and his brother-in-law former cabinet minister Bikram Singh Majithia.

“It is the defeat of Jija-Sala. People have shown them their place. Now both have become a burden on BJP. Such a huge defeat is evidence of the same. The victory of Congress is such a slap in the face of Jija-Sala that its voice will be heard in Delhi,” said Sidhu.

It is an evidence of the revival of Congress in National politics- Punjab CM

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has hailed the Congress victory and termed it a total rejection of the anti-people policies of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ally, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).

“The massive win for Congress candidate Sunil Jakhar shows the people’s complete denunciation of the corrupt and immoral BJP and SAD,” said Captain Amarinder, adding that it also underlined the political annihilation of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the state.

Captain Amarinder thanked the voters of Gurdaspur for their overwhelming love and support from all parts of Gurdaspur, especially the rural areas.

“The over 1.93 lakh margin of victory has not only more than compensated for the 1.36 lakh vote defeat of Congress candidate Pratap Singh Bajwa against BJP’s Vinod Khanna in 2014 but has surpassed even the 1.51 lakh lead by which Sukhbans Kaur Bhinder (Congress) had won in 1980,” Said Captain.

Jakhar’s victory comes as a strong rebuttal to the persistent efforts of the Akali Dal and their campaign in the past six months to undermine the work being done by his government in the state, Punjab CM added.

For AAP, this election marks the end of its political ambitions in Punjab, Captain Amarinder said, pointing out that the dissolution of the Pathankot and Gurdaspur units of AAP a day before the declaration of the results showed that the party had conceded defeat and had accepted that it had completely failed to connect with the people of the state.

Captain Amarinder said the people wanted development, which only the Congress could give them. The people were completely aware of the welfare initiatives taken by the Congress government since taking over the state’s reins in March this year, he said, adding that they had full faith in the government’s commitment to their progress.

Captain Amarinder said the Gurdaspur result once again showed that the Congress was on the path of revival across the country. “The party’s recent victory in several university students’ union elections and its resounding win in the Maharashtra civic polls just two days ago were clear indicators that the party’s fortunes were on the upswing and the result of the Gurdaspur bypoll further strengthened its prospects for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections,” he added.