Congress finished a distant second in the Punjab municipal body elections, winning 397 of the 1,977 wards, as Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) delivered a dominant performance with 958 wards, further consolidating its hold over urban local bodies in the state.
According to Punjab State Election Commission data, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) won 191 wards, BJP 172, Independents 251 and BSP seven.
Despite being the principal opposition party in Punjab and a former ruling party that governed the state for multiple terms before losing power in 2022, the Congress failed to mount a strong challenge to AAP across most municipal corporations.
The party’s strongest performance came in Kapurthala, where it won 31 wards and emerged as the dominant force. It also managed limited gains in pockets such as Chamkaur Sahib, but could not convert its organisational base into wider urban success.
The setback was more pronounced in politically significant areas. In Gidderbaha Municipal Council, considered a Congress stronghold linked to Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, the party secured only two seats out of 19, while AAP swept 17.
Reacting to the results, Warring said the party’s performance was “praiseworthy” but alleged large-scale irregularities in the election process. He claimed around 750 nomination documents of Congress candidates were rejected, which he said significantly affected the outcome.
“The Municipal corporation elections have taken place in Patiala, Ludhiana, Amritsar and Jalandhar. Our performance in them was praiseworthy. 750 documents were rejected in Punjab. The AAP has won 595 seats. They contested unopposed in 80 seats… Those are the seats where papers were rejected, and candidates won unopposed without a contest,” Warring said.
He also accused the ruling party of misusing official machinery and following a “saam, daam, dand, bhed” strategy during the polls.
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal hailed the results as a strong endorsement of the state government, with Mann claiming that voters had rejected “politics of hatred” and divisive politics. He also asserted that AAP’s combined tally far exceeded that of Congress, BJP and Akali Dal together.
Mann said AAP had secured around 890 seats with results for the remaining wards still pending, and expressed confidence that the party would cross the 1,000-seat mark.
Manish Sisodia also claimed that the results reflected voter rejection of “ED politics” in Punjab and alleged that security deposits of a large number of BJP candidates were forfeited.
Polling for 75 Municipal Councils and 20 Nagar Panchayats was held on May 26 across Punjab, with 7,555 candidates contesting. AAP fielded 1,801 candidates, Congress 1,550, BJP 1,316 and Shiromani Akali Dal 1,251.
The results underline Congress’ continuing struggle to regain its urban base in Punjab, despite remaining the state’s principal opposition force and a former ruling party, while also highlighting its allegations of procedural irregularities in the conduct of the polls.
(With inputs from PTI and ANI)
