The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has secured a significant victory in the zila parishad elections for Ludhiana district, emerging as the single largest party. However, the party's performance in the concurrent panchayat samiti polls presented a more complex and mixed picture, revealing strong competition from traditional rivals in rural pockets.
Zila Parishad Victory with Notable Wins
In the district-level zila parishad elections, AAP won a clear plurality. Out of the 25 seats, AAP secured 11. The Congress followed with eight seats, while the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) managed to win three. The remaining three seats were captured by independent candidates. This result positioned AAP as the leading force at the zila parishad level.
The outcomes in constituencies represented by cabinet ministers from the district were particularly scrutinized. In the Khanna assembly segment, represented by Cabinet Minister Tarunpreet Sond, AAP won the Bija zila parishad seat but faced a setback by losing the Lalheri seat. Similarly, in the Sahnewal segment of Cabinet Minister Hardeep Mundiyan, the party clinched the Mattewara seat but lost Chak Sarwan Nath to SAD.
Stiff Competition in Panchayat Samitis
The narrative shifted at the block level, where the panchayat samiti elections underscored a fierce three-way contest. AAP failed to secure a simple majority in several key samitis, necessitating alliances or external support.
In the Khanna panchayat samiti, AAP won six of the 16 zones, while Congress and SAD bagged five each. This left the ruling party three seats short of the nine needed for a majority. A similar situation unfolded in the Ludhiana panchayat samiti, where AAP won 10 of 21 zones, falling just one seat short of the majority mark. Here, SAD won six zones and Congress secured four.
The trend continued in Doraha (7 of 17 zones), Jagraon (8 of 25 zones), and Koom Kalan (6 of 15 zones), where AAP remained two to five seats shy of a majority. In Machhiwara, the result was a perfect hung house, with both AAP and SAD winning six zones each.
Major Setbacks and Strongholds
The party faced significant challenges in Malaud and Raikot. In Malaud, AAP managed only three of 15 zones, with Congress and SAD getting six each. The Raikot samiti saw a decisive Congress victory, with the party winning 17 of 25 zones; AAP finished a distant second with just six seats.
Despite these hurdles, AAP demonstrated strong performances in certain blocks. The party comfortably crossed the majority mark in the Dehlon, Ludhiana One, and Samrala panchayat samitis, establishing clear strongholds.
Analysis and Party Reaction
Overall, AAP secured 88 of the 235 panchayat samiti zones across Ludhiana district. Congress followed with 73 zones, SAD with 44, BJP with 3, and independents won 27. This data confirms that while AAP is the single largest party, Congress remains a formidable second force in rural areas, with SAD retaining a significant presence.
Commenting on the mixed results, AAP MLA from Payal, Manwinder Singh Giaspura, stated that village-level elections often depend on the individual image of candidates. He expressed confidence that the party's vote share would gradually increase in the coming period.
The elections have delivered a clear message: AAP's dominance in the state assembly is not yet fully mirrored at the grassroots level in key rural areas of Ludhiana, where established parties continue to command substantial influence.
