Voting for Punjab Municipal Corporation elections 2024 underway

Representational Image

Polling for election to five municipal corporations and 44 municipal councils and nagar panchayats are underway in Punjab, officials said on Saturday.

The polling began at 7 am amid tight security arrangements and will continue till 4 pm, they added.

The officials said the votes would be counted at the polling stations after the polling had concluded.

The five municipal corporations where the elections are being held are Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala and Phagwara.

More than 3,300 candidates are in the fray for the civic polls, the officials said, adding that a total of 3,809 polling booths have been set up.

A total of 37.32 lakh voters, including 17.75 lakh females, are eligible to cast their votes in these elections.

Electronic voting machines (EVMs) are being used for polling.

Adequate security arrangements have been made, the officials said.

The civic polls will be a litmus test for the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which would like its winning momentum to continue after securing victories in three of the four Assembly bypolls in November.

These elections are important as they will reveal the popularity of the ruling party among urban voters.

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann held roadshows and campaigned for the AAP candidates in the run-up to the elections.

It will also be the first test for Aman Arora after he was appointed as the AAP's Punjab unit chief. Arora took part in poll campaigning and made several promises to the voters.
The stakes are also high for the Congress, which had majority in the Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Patiala municipal corporations.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) are also contesting the municipal corporation polls.

Meanwhile, on December 20, a half-day holiday was announced for government and non-government schools and colleges in Jalandhar for the Municipal Councils and Panchayat elections.

The elections for municipal corporations, councils, and Nagar Panchayats (urban civic bodies) in Punjab were announced by the state's Election Commission on December 9.

The nomination filing process began on December 9 and ended on December 12. Scrutiny of nominations was carried out on December 13, and candidates could withdraw their nominations until December 14.

(With inputs from Agencies)