AAP sweeps sacrilege epicentre, retains Kotkapura, Jaitu
AAP MLA Kultar Singh Sandhwan retains Kotkapura, while Gurdit Singh Sekhon and Amolak Singh win Faridkot and Jaitu, respectively
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday won all three assembly segments in Faridkot district, which was the epicentre of the 2015 sacrilege and police firing incidents. The AAP retained the Kotkapura and Jaitu seats, while it wrested the Faridkot seat from the Congress.
Also read: Punjab election 2022 result constituency-wise
AAP MLA Kultar Singh Sandhwan retained Kotkapura assembly segment by 21,130 votes. He polled 54,009 votes and Congress candidate Ajaipal Singh Sandhu got 32,879 votes. However, Shiromani Akali Dal veteran player and three-time MLA Mantar Singh Brar ended up third with 29,576 votes. Brar was among those named and chargesheeted in the Kotkapura firing case by the Punjab Police special investigation team (SIT).
In Faridkot, former basketball player Gurdit Singh Sekhon of the AAP defeated Youth Akali Dal president Parambans Singh Romana by 16,797 votes. Sekhon secured 53,484 votes, while Romana bagged 36,687 votes. However, two-time MLA and former political adviser to chief minister Kushaldeep Singh KiKi Dhillon finished third with 33,255 votes. The seat was being keenly watched, as a tough triangular contest was expected between the three for second consecutive election.
In Jaitu, Amolak Singh of the AAP defeated the SAD’s Manjit Singh, alias Suba Badal, by 32,789 votes. Amolak bagged 60,242 votes, while Badal polled just 27,453 votes. Congress candidate Darshan Singh Dhilwan bagged the third position by securing 19,388 votes.
In the 2017 assembly elections, Master Baldev Singh won the Jaitu assembly segment. However, Baldev Singh rebelled against the AAP and unsuccessfully contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He was disqualified last year.
