Over 800 candidates lose security deposit

Vishav Bharti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 12

More than 800 candidates who contested the recent state Assembly elections have lost their security deposit.

A defeated candidate who fails to secure more than one sixth of the valid votes polled in the constituency loses his/her security deposit.

There were total 1,146 candidates in the fray out of which 820 lost their security deposit on 117 seats.

The Sanour Assembly constituency in Patiala tops the list with 15 candidates losing their security deposit, followed by Bhoa with 14 and Guru Har Sahai and Ajnala with 13 each. However Fatehgarh Sahib and Dhuri in Sangrur district figures at bottom where just two and three candidates lost their security deposit, respectively.

Most of the candidates who lost their security deposit are Independent candidates. Among prominent parties, 20 candidates of the Aam Aadmi Party lost their security deposit.

In region-wise break-up, the largest number of AAP candidates who lost security deposit comes from the Majha region. There were two candidates of the Congress also who lost their security deposit. Besides, none of the candidates of four Left parties, including CPI, CPM, RMPI; Apna Punjab Party and the All India Trinamool Congress could save their security deposit. Besides, most of the BSP candidates also lost their security deposit.

Known faces who were blown away

Several known faces who lost their security deposit includes SAD’s General JJ Singh (retd) from Patiala, who was contesting against Captain Amarinder Singh and could manage 11,677 votes, president of SAD (Amritsar) Simranjit Singh Mann, who was contesting from Barnala and could get 5,061 votes, AAP’s Himmat Singh Shergill from Majitha who got 10,252 votes, Aapna Punjab Party’s Sucha Singh Chhotepur, who got 1,740 votes and Hardip Singh Kingra from Faridkot with 456 votes.