Had just 18 days for my solo campaign: Nawanshahr candidate Angad Saini

Deepkamal Kaur

Advertisement

Nawanshahr, March 11

Even if Independent candidate and 2017 Nawanshahr Congress MLA Angad Saini could not emerge as the winner, he has surely made a mark by getting 25.44 per cent votes all by himself.

Though he has not won himself, he is perhaps has solace in the fact that his two big opponents from the seat, too, have not been able to win there. Both Congress candidate Satvir Palli Jhikki and AAP candidate Lalit Mohan Pathak had opposed him internally even in his previous elections. Despite getting the Congress ticket that he had been seeking for since the past two terms, Palli Jhikki polled just 6,998 (5.65 per cent) votes.

Nawanshahr tally

• Dr Nachhatar Pal (BSP): 37,031
• Lalit Mohan Pathak (AAP): 31,655
• Angad Saini (Independent): 31,516
• Satvir Palli Jhikki (Congress): 6,998

Despite an AAP wave, Pathak came second bagging 31,655 votes and Angad stood marginally behind him on 31,516 votes with a difference of 139 votes only. Says Angad: “Had there been no AAP wave, I could have been a winner. More votes polled to him were a disfavour me and I faced the brunt of it.”

Angad Saini, whose father Parkash Singh and mother Guriqbal Kaur, too have been Congress MLAs from the seat was denied ticket this time. He had alleged that since his wife Aditi Singh had left the Congress and joined the BJP and was contesting from Rae Bareilli, the party chose to punish him. Hence, the 31-year-old stood as a rebel and managed to have a good campaign.

“I just had 18 days to tell my people that my symbol is not ‘hand’ (Congress) any longer and that they should vote for ‘autorickshaw’ instead. I tried to use my symbol in the best possible manner in my campaign and send across messages via social media. But there is still some lot who could not be connected in such a short time and I lost it,” Angad said.

There were three Saini candidates from the seat that has a majority of the community. Other than him, Palli Jhikki and Kuldip Singh Bajidpur of Sanyukt Samaj Morcha too are Sainis. Bajidpur polled 5,706 votes. Saini’s loss margin from the seat was almost the same at 5,515 votes.

The whole situation clearly gave a good edge to BSP-SAD alliance candidate Dr Nachhatar Pal Singh, who managed to build a wave in his favour.