24062025-LT-01.qxd 6/23/2025 10:48 PM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune EIGHT INDEPENDENTS ADD DIVERSITY TO BYELECTION 2,951 APPEAR FOR CET AS FOREIGN PROSPECTS DWINDLE DILJIT FACES BACKLASH OVER SARDAAR JI 3 WITH HANIA Presence of eight Independents in the byelection fray added depth to the democratic process. P2 Students appeared for the recently conducted CET, choosing local education over uncertain foreign prospects. P3 The singer-actor has been receiving backlash ahead of its release, which features Pakistani actor Hania. P4 » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 34°C | MIN 25°C YESTERDAY MAX 35°C | MIN 29°C SUNSET TUESDAY 7:33 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 5:24 AM » TUESDAY | 24 JUNE 2025 | LUDHIANA AAP win reminder of people’s faith in party’s vision & work, says Aman Arora Shivani Bhakoo and Manav Mander VOTE SHARE OF WINNING PARTY Tribune News Service Ludhiana, June 23 Putting all speculations to rest, Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) candidate Sanjeev Arora won the Ludhiana (West) constituency seat by a margin of 10,637 votes. Arora managed to garner 35,179 votes while rival Bharat Bhushan Ashu got 24,542 votes, followed by BJP candidate Jiwan Gupta, who was able to get 20,323 votes. SAD candidate Paropkar Singh Ghuman was at number four with 8,203 votes. Welcoming this mandate, president of the Punjab state unit of AAP Aman Arora told The Tribune that this mandate had given the party a major boost. He said that the victory was the reminder that the people liked the party, its vision and work. “It is an answer to the opposition parties, which had been speaking “crap” against AAP he ,” said. When the counting was on and was in the last rounds, Arora reached the counting centre to be with the AAP candidate. As soon as the counting began at 8 am, tempers ran high. In the first three rounds, AAP candidate remained ahead of his rivals with 2,895, 2,959 and 2,423 votes, respectively. Congress candidate Ashu got 1,626, 1,746 and 1,722 votes respectively. At the same time BJP’s Gupta was able to fetch 1,177, 1,619 and 2,421 votes while Ghuman got 703, 1,061 and 811 votes. The next three rounds were crucial for AAP as here the Congress maintained its lead over AAP In the fourth . round, Congress went ahead with 2,327 votes while AAP was able to get 1,988 votes followed by BJP with 1,976 and SAD with just 143 votes. The Ludhiana (West) Assembly constituency has witnessed a steady erosion in the vote share of winning candidates over the decades — reflecting a broader trend of political fragmentation and shifting voter loyalties. 1977 A. Vishwanathan Janata Party 53.3% 1980 Joginder Pal Pandey Congress 51.5 % 1985 Harnam Das Johar Congress 46.2 % 1992 Harnam Das Johar Congress 45.4% 1997 Maheshinder Grewal SAD 55.2% 2002 Harnam Das Johar Congress 52.9 % 2007 Harish Rai Dhanda SAD 57 % 2012 Bharat Bhushan Ashu Congress 62.8 % 2017 Bharat Bhushan Ashu Congress 54.4% 2022 Gupreet Gogi AAP 34.8 % 2025 bypoll Sanjeev Arora AAP 39.01% VOTER TURNOUT AAP winning candidate Sanjeev Arora celebrates with his family members at his residence in Ludhiana. BEFITTING REPLY It is an answer to the opposition parties, which had been speaking “crap” against AAP. ❝ ❞ 1977 1980 1985 1992 1997 2002 2007 2012 2017 2022 2025 64.18 % 56.85% 57.65 % 27.36 % 54.21 % 43.77% 58.92 % 69.66% 69.25 % 64.29% 51.33 % Aman Arora (Left) Some women supporters of AAP dance to dhol beats at AAP candidate Sanjeev Arora’s office; and (right) party workers raise the victory slogans outside the counting centre at Khalsa College for Women on Monday. TRIBUNE PHOTOS: HIMANSHU MAHAJAN In round five, the Congress was ahead with 2,395, AAP 2,055, BJP 1,638 and SAD just 241 votes. In the sixth round, Congress was again ahead with 2,384 votes, AAP with 2,166 votes, BJP 1,872 and SAD 324 votes. These were majorly the Congress dominated areas, including Model Gram, Bharat Nagar Chowk, College Road, Gobind Nagar, etc. Seventh round onwards and till 14th AAP remained in lead. In the seventh round, AAP polled 2,872, followed by Congress with 1,886, BJP 1,136 and SAD 422 votes. In round 8, AAP got 2,222, Congress 1,936, BJP 925 AND SAD 642. From round 9 onwards, AAP started with an increase in the lead. AAP polled 2,625 votes, Congress 1,435, BJP 1,118 and SAD 422. In round 10th, AAP performed better with 2,679 votes as compared to Congress with 1,405, BJP 1,199 and SAD 465 votes. In round 11, AAP got 2,988 votes, followed by the Congress with 1,506, SAD with 1,118 and BJP with 730 votes. In round 12, AAP got 2,365, Congress 1,172, BJP 1,624 and SAD 446 votes. In round 13, AAP got 2,772 votes, Con- gress 1,396, BJP 1,217 and SAD 936 votes. In the last round, AAP got 2,135, Congress 1,574, BJP 1,647 and SAD 464 votes. The margin between AAP and Congress was lowest after five rounds. AAP was leading with just 2,504 votes. But by the end of last round, the margin reached 10,637 votes, registering a thumping win for AAP candidate Sanjeev Arora. Top cops on toes Top cops, including Commissioner of Police Swapan Sharma, DCP Rupinder Singh and other senior cops, remained glued to their seats at the media centre to keep a watch on the proceedings. The cops could be seen looking at the maps to check the areas and voting percentage, etc. The counting was held at Khalsa College for Women, where huge police force had been deployed. The connecting roads, including those from Ghumar Mandi, College Road, Ferozpur Road, etc., were all barricaded by the police till the counting was on at the venue. Commuters and residents had to take alternate routes to reach their respective destinations. Bigwigs gather at Arora’s new house to celebrate win Shivani Bhakoo Tribune News Service Ludhiana, June 23 As soon as the trends after the seventh round of counting started emerging in favour of AAP candidate Sanjeev Arora, there was an atmosphere of celebration and jubilation in the AAP camp. On social media platforms, party supporters, workers and leaders could be seen dancing to the tunes of dhol at 22 K Sarabha Nagar — the main office of Arora. At the same time, at his new home in Gurdev Nagar, hundreds of industrialists, family members, friends and well-wishers started reaching there to congratulate him and his family on this thumping win. Talking to The Tribune, Arora said that it was the victory of people. “I am touched by the love and affection showered on me by the voters of Ludhiana (W), without their support and motivation, this would not have been possible,” said Arora. As soon as the results were declared, state president of AAP Aman Arora reached the city to be with the winning candidate. AAP workers in good numbers gathered outside Khalsa College for Women around 2 pm, when the results were about to be announced officially in favour of AAP Aro. ra accompanied by Aman and other AAP ministers Balbir Singh and Tarunpreet Singh Sondh reached the counting centre to collect the winner certificate. One of the close relatives of Arora said that before the beginning of counting, the latter went to Durga Mata Temple, Sai Temple, Gurdwara Dukh Niwaran and Sangla Wala Shivala to pay obeisance. “There is happiness all over. These three months were hectic for the entire family, his supporters and well-wishers, so now just the celebrations,” said a relative. AAP misused govt machinery Despite Sukhbir’s aggressive campaign, in byelection, claims Gupta SAD slips to 4th spot new Punjab,” he added, asserting that the BJP would continue to work day and night for the development of Ludhiana (West). He expressed confidence that by 2027, the BJP would form a double-engine government in Punjab. Gupta vowed to expose the misuse of government resources by the AAP during this by-election. Tribune News Service Ludhiana, June 23 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Ludhiana (West) Assembly constituency Jeevan Gupta addressed a press conference at the district BJP office located in Dugri here. Speaking to the media, Gupta said that while the BJP accepted the verdict given by the people, this byelection raised several questions about the functioning of the state government. He alleged that there was blatant misuse of government machinery during the election. “In some places, the voter turnout was extremely low, while in others it was unusually high, even touching 65-70%,” Gupta claimed. He cited a specific booth where only 465 votes were cast, and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) secured around 412 votes, which he called highly suspicious. Gupta criticised AAP leaders and ministers for celebrating the win, saying that, “They know very well that no real development has Bittu takes responsibility for defeat BJP candidate from Ludhiana (West) Assembly constituency Jeevan Gupta addresses a press conference at Dugri in Ludhiana. ASHWANI DHIMAN taken place in Punjab in the last three years. This victory was only possible because of misuse of power and machinery.” He also pointed out that the BJP had only 12 days to campaign, but despite that they reached out to the people effectively and earned 23% of the vote share, which is equivalent to BJP’s performance in the 2022 Assembly election. “Our mission is to build a Union Minister for Railways and Food Processing Ravneet Singh Bittu today accepted responsibility for the BJP’s defeat in the Ludhiana byelection, while praising party candidate Jeevan Gupta for putting up a strong fight and securing over 20,000 votes. Bittu admitted that the delay in finalising the BJP candidate was a key factor behind the party loss. “The announcement of Jeevan Gupta’s ticket was delayed as the party leadership was engaged with Operation Sindhoor campaign. This affected our campaign planning,” he said. Sukhmeet Bhasin Tribune News Service Ludhiana, June 23 In a major setback to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), the party failed to make a mark in the Ludhiana byelection, finishing a distant fourth with only 8,203 votes despite an intense campaign led by party president Sukhbir Badal. The result underscores the party’s continued struggle to regain political ground in urban Punjab. Sukhbir had thrown his weight behind the campaign in the constituency. His strategy focussed on reconnecting with traditional voter bases, highlighting alleged failures of AAP government and presenting SAD as the only alternative to both AAP and Congress. However, the results told a different story. Political observers say SAD’s poor performance is indicative of a deepening disconnect between the party and the urban electorate. Once dominant in parts of Punjab, SAD has increasingly found itself unable to resonate with voters in key cities c m y b like Ludhiana. The low voter turnout of just 51.33%, the lowest in nearly two decades, further complicated matters for the party. Despite claims of voter manipulation, misuse of government machinery and the exploitation of government schemes by the ruling AAP , SAD could not convert public discontent into electoral gains. This latest defeat is likely to intensify questions about SAD’s strategy and leadership direction. “This result is a wake-up call. Despite our hard work, we failed to strike a chord with voters. We need serious introspection, not excuses,” admitted a senior SAD leader on condition of anonymity. As SAD continues to grapple with its declining influence, especially in urban constituencies, the bypoll serves as a harsh reminder that reinvention, not just aggressive campaigning, is necessary for a political revival. SAD candidate Parupkar Singh Ghuman said he was satisfied with the results and he was thankful to the people who worked so hard. Bharat Bhushan Ashu’s house at Model Gram, Ludhiana, wears a deserted look. ASHWANI DHIMAN Ashu concedes defeat, vows to return stronger Tribune News Service Ludhiana, June 23 A two-time MLA from Ludhiana (West), Bharat Bhushan Ashu, who served terms in 2012 and 2017, missed a comeback in the 2025 bypoll, finishing second to AAP’s Sanjeev Arora. For Ashu, the contest carried added weight, not only as a shot at redemption after his 2022 defeat, but also as a symbolic counter step to his nearly year-long imprisonment under the AAP-led state gov- ernment in an alleged corruption case. Despite the loss, Ashu projected composure. “I have accepted the fatwa given by the people. My entire party stood by me. There might be some shortcoming in me only,” Ashu said while expressing gratitude to voters and colleagues. He took full responsibility for the result, stating that, “The entire responsibility of the defeat is mine, and I will work harder in future. In the next election, we will give tough competition.” Acknowledging the democratic verdict, he emphasised that the race was anything but easy for the ruling party. “It was not a one-sided election and there was no free run for the government, we gave them a tough fight,” he maintained. He also congratulated Sanjeev Arora and said he was there whenever he needed him for Ludhiana’s development. With a promise to return with renewed vigour for future electoral battles, Ashu said, “We will fight back in the 2027 assembly elections.”