Meanwhile, the BJP, which saw its decades-old alliance with SAD snap in the wake of the farmers’ protests against the three farm laws, is involved in a headhunting exercise in Punjab to identify potential candidates for the forthcoming elections. With virtually no hold in the rural parts of the state, it is on a hunting spree for influential and financially sound candidates to ensure a respectable show, Sanjeev Sharma, a Punjab-based political analyst said.The BJP has even joined hands with former Punjab Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh, who floated a new political outfit called ‘Punjab Lok Congress’ after a fallout with the Congress, and Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa founder of Shiromani Akali Dal SAD (Sanyukt) for the Punjab polls.The SAD, on its part, has chosen to ally with Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ostensibly with an eye on Dalit voters. Punjab has a significant population of Dalit communities.Chandigarh-based political observer Dr Pramod Kumar opined that the UT poll results are a clear mandate against the BJP. “The Congress, despite getting the highest vote share, seems to have suffered because a large number of Congress workers joined AAP. It is however near impossible for the AAP to replicate such a success in Punjab Assembly polls,” he said.Brinder Singh Dhillon, Punjab Youth Congress president, termed the results of Chandigarh Municipal Corporation an ‘eye-opener’ for the party. He cautioned that going forward with conventional ways and taking a win in Punjab for granted will be a folly for the grand old party.”Coming third despite getting the highest vote share of 29.79% calls for introspection to determine our weaknesses and make amends,” he said.
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