It was Punjab’s date with democracy on February 4, 2017. The campaigning had reached its crescendo in the run-up to the elections. With a record 78.6% of the voters exercising their franchise in Punjab, the fate of the contestants is now sealed in the electronic voting machines (EVMs). The turnout is slightly more than the 78.2% turnout recorded during the 2012 assembly elections poll in Punjab.
The state witnessed a slow start to voting at the outset. Thankfully, it gathered momentum and by afternoon, long serpentine queues were witnessed at numerous voting stations. Eventually, the chill was no dampener as the young and old voters alike enthusiastically waited for their turn to cast the vote.
High voting was witnessed in the Malwa belt which has 69 out of the 117 assembly seats of Punjab. The results of this belt are likely to prove decisive in the final outcome.
Sardulgar (88%), Gidderbaha (87%) and Jalalabad (86%) topped the voting charts in Punjab. Meanwhile Amritsar (60%) and Atamnagar (62%) registered the minimum voter turnout.
Barring stray cases of brawl and arguments amongst party workers, no major untoward incident was reported in the state. The EVMs developed technical snags which delayed the smooth conduct of voting at many polling stations.
Meanwhile the authorities were on their toes throughout. 12.43 lakh liters of liquor, 2598 kg of drugs and narcotics and Rs 58.02 crore cash was seized in Punjab.
The BJP, along with its Shiromani Akali Dal are in power in Punjab. The ruling party faces stiff competition from Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party which made its debut in the Punjab assembly elections as well as from the veteran Captain Amarinder Singh of Congress. The results are scheduled to be announced on March 11, 2017.
