Polling ends peacefully in Jagraon, Dakha

Jaswant Shetra

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, May 19

The voting for seventh and last phase of the 17th Lok Sabha elections ended in a peaceful manner in Jagraon and Dakha Assembly segments falling under the Ludhiana constituency.

In Jagraon constituency, 63 per cent voters exercised their voting right during the elections while 61 per cent voted in the Dakha constituency. The voter turnout remained almost equal in rural and urban areas of Jagraon and Dakha segments.

The elections were held in a largely peaceful manner. There was no report of any kind of poll-related violence during the elections in Jagraon and Dakha segments. The police had made elaborate security arrangements in both the constituencies for conducting elections.

Though there was a lot of enthusiasm among the electorate to cast their votes in the Jagraon Assembly constituency, yet the voter turnout remained low as compared to the previous Lok Sabha elections when 71 per cent voters exercised their right to franchise. 

The people rushed to polling booths as soon as the voting started at 7am. The voting process was slow during the morning hours, but it gradually picked up in the later part of the day. Voters from various age groups, including first timers or the elders, were seen standing in long queues at various polling booths across the constituencies. 

Except a minor incident of heated arguments between the supporters of Congress candidate Ravneet Singh Bittu and PDA aspirant Simranjit Singh Bains at Rurka Kalan village in the Dakha constituency, there was no report of any kind of violence or major conflict between activists of different political parties in the Jagraon and Dakha constituencies.

With this the fate of 22 candidates contesting general elections from the Ludhiana Lok Sabha constituency was sealed in electronic voting machines (EVMs).  There is a four-cornered contest between Ravneet Singh Bittu of the Congress, Maheshinder Singh Grewal of the SAD-BJP alliance, Simranjit Singh Bains of the Punjab Democratic Alliance (PDA) and Prof Tejinder Singh Gill of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Ludhiana constituency.

Though supporters of all these four candidates are claiming victory of their party, political observers expect a close contest between Bittu, Bains and Grewal. Congress’ Ravneet Singh Bittu had emerged victorious in the previous Lok Sabha elections in 2014 by defeating AAP candidate Harvinder Singh Phoolka, SAD-BJP candidate Manpreet Singh Ayali and Simranjit Singh Bains, who had contested as an Independent candidate from Ludhiana. 

Former SAD MLA from Jagraon SR Kaler expressed satisfaction over the election process. “The elections were held in a peaceful and fair manner. I thank voters and the Election Commission for conducting elections in a peaceful and fair manner,” said Kaler. 

Former SAD MLA from Mullanpur Dakha Manpreet Singh Ayali too expressed satisfaction on the election process. 

Sikh activist Surat Singh Khalsa cast vote 

Prominent Sikh activist Surat Singh Khalsa, who has been on an indefinite hunger strike demanding release of Sikh detainees lodged in various jails of the country, also cast his vote during the Lok Sabha elections. Khalsa has been undergoing treatment at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) in Ludhiana for more than two-and-a-half-years. He took few hours leave from the hospital to cast his vote at his native Hasanpur village in Dakha constituency. 

A team led by Naib Tehsildar (Ludhiana West) Harminder Singh brought Khalsa to the polling booth at Hasanpur village. Khalsa has been on hunger strike for more than four years demanding release of Sikh detainees lodged in different jails of the country.