The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) secured 127 of the 289 total wards in the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) elections held earlier this week. The party’s strongest performance came in Hoshiarpur, where it achieved a majority in five out of six ULBs, winning 46 of the 80 available wards. In Jalandhar, AAP claimed 49 of the 99 wards across seven ULBs. However, the results were less favourable elsewhere; the party trailed in Nawanshahr with 16 of 47 wards (where Independents took 17), and struggled in Kapurthala, winning only 16 of 63 wards.
The Congress party currently trails at 80 wards, though leadership argues the actual figure is higher. They claim several candidates in areas like Adampur and Nurmahal contested as independents rather than using the party symbol.
In Jalandhar, the party secured 21 wards, with Mehatpur serving as their only stronghold. Meanwhile, Shahkot MLA Hardev S Laddi Sherowalia is poised to see his supported councillors take the lead in the local Nagar Panchayat.
The party’s most significant victory came from Kapurthala, where MLA Rana Gurjeet Singh led a sweep of 31 out of 50 wards. Rana highlighted the performance with data: “Congress bagged 20,941 votes, significantly outpacing AAP (12,338), SAD (4,215), and the BJP (4,050), while Independents trailed with just 965 votes.”
The Indian National Congress faced a significant setback in several key areas, drawing a “duck” (zero seats) in both Sultanpur Lodhi and Banga. The party’s performance remained lukewarm elsewhere. In Nawanshahr, it secured eight out of 19 wards, while in Hoshiarpur, it managed to win only 20 of the 80 total wards — just one-fourth of the available seats.
The BJP’s primary success came from Mukerian, where it won seven of the 15 wards, finishing just one seat short of a majority. Beyond Mukerian, the party’s presence in the Doaba region was limited to eight additional seats. In Kapurthala the BJP won from three wards, and in Hariana, Nawanshahr, Kartarpur, Nakodar and Nurmahal, the party won in one ward each.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) hit a historic low, slumping to a single-digit total of just nine wards across the region. Their tally included — Kapurthala: three wards; Mehatpur and Nawanshahr: two wards each; and Banga and Sultanpur Lodhi: one ward each. Notably, the SAD failed to open its account in any of the six Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in Hoshiarpur.
Meanwhile, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) secured four seats. This included two in Nawanshahr — the stronghold of their MLA, Nachhatar Pal — and another two in the reserved constituency of Phillaur.
Box: Total wards in Doaba: 289
AAP: 127
INC: 80
BJP: 15
SAD: 9
BSP: 4
Ind: 54
