Punjab, which witnessed a triangular contest in the assembly polls, could be in for a neck-and-neck fight between the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) while the ruling SAD-BJP may face a drubbing, according to pollsters. Exit polls released ahead of the 11 March counting predict the SAD-BJP combine, which has been ruling the state for 10 years, could be struggling to get even into double digits in the 117-member House due to multiple factors including the anti-incumbency. [caption id=“attachment_3327106” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] While India Today-Axis exit polls gave 62-71 seats to the Congress and 42-51 to AAP, India TV-C Voter projected 41-49 for the Congress and 59-67 seats for the AAP. India News-MRC and News 24-Chanakya forecast 55 seats to the Congress and 54 to the AAP. The ruling Akali Dal-BJP alliance was reduced to single digit tally in all exit polls. Away from the hustle and bustle of the exit polls, the SAD-BJP alliance is confident of defying the pollsters “like in 2012”, when it proved the surveys wrong. 89-year-old chief minister Parkash Singh Badal claimed the combine would win 72 seats. As for Congress, Amarinder Singh claimed it would win 65 seats and the AAP exuded confidence of bagging close to 100. The state went to polls in single phase on 4 February and recorded 77.36 percent polling against 78.57 percent in the 2012 polls. Punjab, which had mostly seen a contest between SAD-BJP alliance and the Congress over the last few decades, added a third front in the 2017 Assembly election with the entrance of Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP. There were a total of 1,145 candidates in the fray, with alll the top-three contenders Congress, SAD-BJP alliance as well as AAP fielding 117 candidates. Also in the fray in Punjab are Communisty Party of India — Marxist (CPM), Communist Party of India — Marxist Liberation (CPI-ML), Aapna Punjab Party (APP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Punjab Front, Trinamool Congress (TMC), Punjab United (PU), Akali Dal (AD), Apna Punjab (AP), Jai Jawan Jai Kisan Party (JJJKP), Swabhiman Party (SP) and Janta Dal United (JDU). “The counting of votes will take place on Saturday (11 March) for which all necessary preparations have been made,” an election office spokesman said in Chandigarh. It was a record for the state when the SAD (with BJP) came back to power in 2012 as no party had ever been given two consecutive terms. Since reorganisation of Punjab in 1966, the Congress and the SAD have been ruling the state alternately. The SAD-BJP alliance formed the government for the first time in 2007 and retained majority in 2012. This time around, while the SAD is contesting 94 seats the BJP is 23. The Congress has contested all the seats. The AAP and its ally Lok Insaf Party, led by the Bains brothers of Ludhiana, are fighting 112 and 5 seats respectively. With inputs from agencies
Punjab Election Result 2017 highlights: Amarinder meets Governor, oath-taking ceremony on 16 March
Punjab, which witnessed a triangular contest in the assembly polls, could be in for a neck-and-neck fight between the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party.
 "Punjab Election Result 2017 highlights: Amarinder meets Governor, oath-taking ceremony on 16 March")
Captain Amarinder Singh meets governor, oath-taking ceremony on 16 March
Reports have said that Singh has also left for Delhi.
Met Governor and staked claim to make government, 16th has been fixed as the date: Captain Amarinder Singh #Punjab pic.twitter.com/zvDVHidSYP
— ANI (@ANI) March 12, 2017
Amarinder Singh says his govt will form ‘Special Task Force’ to curb the drug menace
Amarinder Singh asserted that his government will form a ‘Special Task Force’ to curb the drug menace in Punjab, while making the state more investor-friendly. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured him full cooperation for the development of the state.
On the vexed issue of Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, Amarinder said it was important to see the quantum of water available with Punjab. “When Punjab does not have enough water, the question of giving it to other states does not arise,” he said. He said Punjab has 60 percent of agrarian land with just eight MAF (million acre-feet) water, while Haryana with 40 percent of agriculture land has 12 MAF water. The Congress’ chief ministerial candidate said he was committed to fulfill all the promises made by the party in its election manifesto.
Read the full PTI report here .
Parkash Singh Badal, Sukhbir promise to be a part of a ‘responsible opposition’
As responsible opposition we'll support all matters related to Punjab. Congratulate Captain sahab & his party: Sukhbir Singh Badal #Punjab pic.twitter.com/vr99Q0koRf
— ANI (@ANI) March 12, 2017
Whatever they (Congress) will do will come in front of you: Parkash Singh Badal after tendering his resignation pic.twitter.com/qHWQgDihKL
— ANI (@ANI) March 12, 2017
Parkash Singh Badal resigns
Outgoing chief minister Parkash Singh Badal met Governor VP Singh Badnore earlier today and tendered his resignation. The 89-year-old leader of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) won from Lambi, but his party fared poorly winning just 15 seats while SAD’s alliance partner Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won just three seats at the end of counting of votes on 11 march. SAD, however, was the second most popular party in terms of votes receiving 25.2% of the total vote share.
#BREAKING -- Prakash Singh Badal resigns after meeting with Governor pic.twitter.com/pGzTgTR05o
— News18 (@CNNnews18) March 12, 2017
Two Congress workers killed in clash with SAD | India Today
With the results being declared, the knives are out in Punjab. According to India Today, two Congress workers were killed in the state during a violent clash with Shiromani Akali Dal workers in Mansa.
Earlier today, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Captain Amarinder Singh said that his party won’t indulge in vendetta politics. Will this event change his party’s stand?
Amarinder Singh promises Congress won’t engage in ‘vendetta politics’
“On the first cabinet meeting, we will bring those issues which have no monetary involvement,” said Amarinder Singh.
“We will liberalise industrial policy,” he further said.
“The prime minister assured me of all support on the financial front…I have asked the prime minister for debt waiver. We will also reform Punjab police,” said the Congress’ chief ministerial candidate.
“I spoke to Priyanka Gandhi and told her we’ll bounce back in UP,” he also said.
“There will be no vendetta politics, no victimisation. There is a Constitution and law. You can’t just break all that,” Singh said, when asked about what action he’ll take against people from the SAD-BJP alliance facing allegations of promoting drug trade.
“Punjab’s security lies in the security of ties with our neighbours,” he also said.
It’s official: Congress gets 2/3rd majority, wins 77 seats, 38.5% vote share
The Election Commission announced the final results of the Punjab Assembly Election with Congress winning 77 seats. According to Amarinder Singh, this is one of the best performance of the party in the state.
Punjab has given two bonus seats on my birthday: Captain Amarinder Singh | CNN-News18
“The people of Punjab have given me two bonus seats on my 75th birthday”
People have voted for stability: Captain Amarinder Singh | CNN-News18
“The people have gone for stability. There is a debt of Rs 2 lakh crore, our budget is in deficit, jobs are not there and education is in shambles,” he said adding that people have voted against all that.
Singh also said that he will get rid of synthetic drugs known as chitta from the state in one month. “Everybody is growing bhang, but the killer here is chitta. I have promised to finish it in four weeks. And we are going to do that. We don’t believe in catching people and shoving them in jails. If anything comes out during the investigation we will take legal action them,” he said.
AAP was hyped too much: Captain Amarinder Singh | CNN-News18
Speaking to the TV channel, Captain Amarinder Singh said that AAP was too much hyped. “When they were saying that they are going to sweep Malwa. Even I started wondering how are they going to win Malwa, which has been our own bastion for so many years. But when I started going around, I realised that people liked us,” Singh said.
Clarifying on his allegations of AAP promoting fringe elements in the state, Singh once again said that lot of people who joined AAP have some sort of grudge against the country. “There are people who think differently who curse Congress, and talk about 1984. They (AAP) were collecting individuals who had a grouse against the country and not just Punjab,” he said.
Singh also rubbished claims of AAP emerging as a national party. He said the party’s true colours have come out. " I don’t think anything is going to happen for them in 2019," he added.
Expected to win 66-plus seats: Captain Amarinder Singh | CNN-News18
“I expected 66 plus or minus seat, but we have gotten way above our expectations. In fact, our poll strategist Prashant Kishor has said that if the bubble of AAP burst we will cross 70, but else it will be somewhere around 66.”
Party? What party? Where is the party?
All this talk of this party, that party is really giving me an appetite. Pity it had to be a dry day. I think I will pick up some good stuff from the Congress headquarters at the Chowk. And have it on the rocks!
Modi thanks people of Punjab for 10 years support
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday thanked the people of Punjab for giving SAD-BJP combine the opportunity to serve for 10 years and “for the support we got in these polls.”
Congress wins 73 seats so far, counting in progress in three
At 5.30 pm, the tally of seats stood at 74 for Congress with leading in three, 20 for AAP and 18 for SAD-BJP. The Lok Insaf Party won two seats.
Rahul Gandhi thanks Punjab for support | ANI
I thank everyone in Punjab for their immense faith & support. This is a mandate for a brighter future for Punjab and it's youth:Rahul Gandhi
— ANI (@ANI) March 11, 2017
Voting share in Punjab (till 4 pm)
Thankyou @narendramodi ji for your good wishes. I look forward to working with you for the betterment of Punjab. https://t.co/igyXezowuM
— Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) March 11, 2017
Bikram Singh Majithia wins from Majitha
Akali candidate Bikram Singh Majithia won from the Majitha seat by defeating his nearest rival, Congress candidate Sukhjinder Raj Singh Lally, by 22,884 votes.
Majithia, brother-in-law of Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal polled 65,803 votes while Lally got 42,919 votes.
AAP candidate Himmat Singh Shergill managed to secure 10,252 votes. — PTI
Congress crosses majority mark, wins 61 seats so far
The Indian National Congress has emerged as the single largest party in Punjab winning 61 seats till 3.15 pm and leading in 17 other seats. Congress has contested the election with Captain Amarinder Singh as the chief ministerial candidate. Singh won the Patiala seat with a large majority will be the next remember.
Results were declared on 98 seats with counting in progress in 19 seats. As per the Election Commission, at 3.15 pm, the tally in Punjab stood at 61 wins for Congress, 19 wins for Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), 13 for Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), three for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and two wins for Lok Insaf Party.
Congress was leading in 17 seats followed by AAP and SAD, each leading in one seat.
Captain Amarinder Singh: Lone star in Congress’s falling ship
In the massive shipwreck that the political fortunes of the Congress party have faced in the past few years, the only name to bob up and stay afloat on the political waters is that of Captain Amarinder Singh.
He was the lone star that the Congress could flaunt among its slim victory numbers in the 2014 general elections when he had defeated BJP bigwig Arun Jaitley in a one-sided battle in Amritsar constituency.
And today, he is the lone star in leading the party to victory in a state at a time when Congress has almost vanished from the entire country. It’s befitting that on the day he turns 75, he is getting the gift of a state that he has nurtured politically during the stormiest times in the history of the Congress party.
Read the full article here .
Congress inches closer to majority with 57 wins, leads in 22 seats
Riding on the anger against the Badals and the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (SAD-BJP) alliance, the Indian National Congress has won 57 seats (at 3 pm), just two seats away from the 59- seat mark that is required to prove majority in Punjab Assembly. Captain Amarinder Singh seems to have flinched success for the national party in Punjab which went for polling along with four other states in February and March this year.
Key constituencies where high-profile candidates battled in Punjab
Of the 117 constituencies which underwent polling in Punjab, several saw close fights between high profile candidates whether it was Bhagwant Mann vs Sukhbir Singh Badal in Jalalabad or Captain Amarinder Singh vs Parkash Singh Badal in Lambi. Click here to read our list of key constituencies in Punjab.
AAP’s HS Phoolka wins Dakha seat | Election Commission
Harvinder Singh Phoolka of Aam Aadmi Party has won the Dakha seat by 4169 seats. He beat Manpreet Singh Ayali by 4169 seats.
No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play everybody: Navjot Singh Sidhu
#ResultsWithNews18 |No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play everybody, says @sherryontopp after victory in Punjab pic.twitter.com/UvHeW6ID6A
— News18 (@CNNnews18) March 11, 2017
Narendra Modi congratulates Captain Amarinder Singh
Spoke to @capt_amarinder & congratulated him on the win in Punjab. Also wished him a happy birthday & prayed for his long & healthy life.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017
Trajectory of leads from 8.30 am to 2 pm
We accept people’s mandate: Arvind Kejriwal
This is Arvind Kejriwal’s first tweet since this day began.
जनता का फ़ैसला सर माथे पे। सभी कार्यकर्ताओं ने बहुत मेहनत की। संघर्ष जारी रहेगा।
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) March 11, 2017
AAP defeat in Punjab tragic: Yogendra Yadav
AAP defeat in Punjab tragic as it dashes hope of millions of Punjabis. Shows you can't oppose falsehood with halftruth.
— Yogendra Yadav (@_YogendraYadav) March 11, 2017
Congress should focus on regional leaders
Left to him, Rahul Gandhi would have actually ensured the Congress doesn’t win Punjab. With his half-baked ideas about leaders, organisation and cadre, he had sidelined Captain Amarinder Singh and given the party’s reins to politicians whose only claim to fame was their access to the Congress vice-president’s drawing room.
Just a year before the elections, the Congress seemed to be in complete disarray. Factionalism was rampant as several leaders were unhappy with its state chief Pratap Singh Bajwa. Hurt by the treatment meted out to him, Captain was sulking, giving indications that he may either form a new party or become silent in elections. Taking advantage of the confusion with the Congress, the AAP appeared to be on the surge.
Read the full article here .
Punjab CM ready to resign
Parkash Singh Badal is going to resign tomorrow. It reminds me of the time I resigned from my old job after throwing a stone through the shopfront window. Okay, so there was some broken glass, some injury-shinjury etc. But I resigned. I did the right thing.
Congress leading in 78 seats: News18
If Congress actually wins 78 seats in Punjab, it will have 2/3rd majority in the state Assembly. Even other reports are saying that Congress is leading in almost 78 seats.
Having said that, AAP+ is now leading in more seats than the SAD-BJP alliance. Even though the exit polls were horribly wrong about a close Congress-AAP contest in the state, this is still a decent show from AAP, considering this was they were participating in Punjab polls for the first time.
Paresh Rawal ‘congratulates’ Congress
Actor and BJP MP Paresh Rawal congratulated Congress in his own unique way.
Inspite of RG Cong wins Punjab ! Congrats ! Amarinder ji played truly a Captains inning !
— Paresh Rawal (@SirPareshRawal) March 11, 2017
We will discuss the reasons for our loss: CM Parkash Singh Badal
We will discuss the reasons in the core committee meeting & analyse each aspect of our performance in the elections: Prakash Singh Badal pic.twitter.com/jnSI6VEvn1
— ANI (@ANI) March 11, 2017
Sometimes, just sometimes, party workers show you how to party.
.@INCIndia supporters celebrate outside @capt_amarinder’s residence holding placards that read ‘Tum AAP, hum tumhare baap’ pic.twitter.com/2fkwyUBPAd
— News18 (@CNNnews18) March 11, 2017
People watching trends and results of #StateElections on the big LED screen installed outside Nirvachan Sadan, New Delhi pic.twitter.com/VGyi0iKNkT
— PIB India (@PIB_India) March 11, 2017
AAP bubble has burst: Congress
#CongWinsPunjab: @AamAadmiParty bubble has burst, party failed to emerge as serious political force, says @capt_amarinder @INCIndia
— Punjab Congress (@INCPunjab) March 11, 2017
Let's face it.Cong win in Punjab is because of @capt_amarinder not @OfficeOfRG. Congress needs new ideas, not enough to just criticise Modi
— Nidhi Razdan (@Nidhi) March 11, 2017
Tables turned for Dr Raj Kumar and Sohan Singh Thandal
In Chabbewal constituency, Dr Raj Kumar of the Indian National Congress finally had his revenge on SAD leader and Minister for Jails and Tourism Sohan Singh Thandal. Kumar beat Thandal by a massive 29,261 votes. Thandal is four-time MLA from the area and is considered close to outgoing Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. Talking of incumbency, Thandal may just have the worst of it. Interestingly, he had beaten Kumar by 6,246 votes in 2012 Assembly Election.
Unlike others I think @AamAadmiParty has actually made strong start in Punjab. Commendable registering such strong presence in 1st election
— Rahul Kanwal (@rahulkanwal) March 11, 2017
Seats won so far
Congress: 9
AAP: 3
SAD-BJP: 0
Trends so far
News18
Congress: 75
AAP+: 24
SAD-BJP: 18
Times Now
Congress: 72
AAP+: 27
SAD-BJP: 17
India Today TV
Congress: 74
AAP+: 24
SAD-BJP: 17
NDTV
Congress: 75
AAP+: 25
SAD-BJP: 17
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