Punjab: Even as NDA Wins, The Akalis Are Losing

Even as the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) prepares itself to celebrate their victory, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has a lot to introspect about. Of the 10 seats the party contested in, it finds itself struggling in at least 7. BJP, which had contested 3 seats, looks set to secure one, that of Gurdaspur, and are leading slightly in Hoshiarpur, whereas the defeat in Amritsar seems certain.

For Akalis (SAD), the only reason for joy comes from Bathinda where Harsimrat Kaur Badal is leading, but slightly. Sukhbir Singh Badal, standing from Firozpur, is all set to win. Thus, for now, the SAD-BJP alliance is looking at a collective figure of 4 seats.

In Anandpur Sahib, Congress’ Manish Tewari is leading, along with leaders in other constituencies. While the Congress’ ascent may be attributed to Captain Amarinder Singh, it is the vacuum created by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) that has been successfully captured by the Congress, a defeat that will weigh heavily on the minds of the SAD.

Assuming SAD is not able to gain a lead in Anandpur Sahib and loses its close lead in Bathinda, the SAD-BJP alliance could look at a final figure of 3 with AAP on 1 and Congress on 9.