Voting turnout recorded a new high in general/by-elections of 8 Municipal Corporations and 109 Municipal Councils and Nagar Panchayats of Punjab as 71.39% of votes have been polled. These polls have been delayed by at least six months due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A spokesperson of the Punjab State Election Commission said that the highest turnout was recorded in Mansa district, while the lowest turnout recorded in SAS Nagar district.
Meanwhile, there were clashes , violence and allegations of booth capturing by ruling Congress were reported from more than a dozen places. The opposition leaders slammed the ruling party for ‘making these polls a farce’.
Elaborating further, the spokesperson said that in Mohali the voting turnout recorded 60.08%, while Roopnagar’s voting figure has gone up to 73.80%.
Mohali (urban) saw a drop of 5% in the turnout, as compared to 61% recorded in 2015, when elections were held for the first time. Overall, the district reported 60% voter turnout, with Banur leading at 78% and Zirakpur lagging behind at 55%. The polling largely passed off peacefully, though four people were injured in minor clashes in Dera Bassi and there was an allegation of booth capturing in Mohali city.
Though it was declared that the temperature of all voters will be screened at the entry, but that did not happen. Most of the officials were also without masks despite directions issued in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The spokesperson said that the voting percentage in Fatehgarh Sahib achieved 75.78% mark, Amritsar scored 71.20%, Tarn Taran 63.12%, Gurdaspur 70%, Pathankot 75.37%, Bathinda 79%, Mansa 82.99%, Faridkot 71.03%, Hoshiarpur 66.68% and Jalandhar’s poll percentage reached 73.29%. The result will come on February 17, 2021. There would be a dry day on February 17 in the state.
