Jalandhar by election: Voting begins at 6 pm and will continue till 6 pm
Jalandhar: Polling for the Jalandhar Lok Sabha by-election began today amid tight security arrangements with over 16 lakh voters deciding the political fate of 19 candidates, including those from various political parties. Polling will be held from 8 am to 6 pm for which 1972 polling stations have been set up.
The total number of voters in the nine assembly constituencies of this Lok Sabha constituency is 1621800, which includes 844904 male, 776855 female and 41 third gender.
Around 8,000 police personnel, paramilitary forces and officials have been deployed in urban and rural areas to ensure free, fair and peaceful polling. The counting of votes will take place on May 13.
The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the state has fielded former MLA Rinku, who quit the Congress a few days ago and joined the party. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded Inder Iqbal Singh Atwal, son of former Assembly Speaker Charanjit Singh Atwal. Mr. Atwal has left the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and joined the party.
The Congress has given ticket to Karmjit Kaur, wife of late MP Santokh Chaudhary. The SAD has fielded its two-time MLA sukhvinder Kumar Sukhi, a doctor by profession. The SAD and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) also have the support. The electoral contest is mainly a one-on-one contest. The seat fell vacant following the death of sitting MP Santokh Chaudhary.