Punjab assembly by-poll to be held on Saturday

Over 1.52 lakh voters would be eligible to exercise their franchise in the by-poll to the Dhuri assembly constituency to be held on Saturday.

State election officials said all arrangements had been made for the peaceful conduct of the by-poll. A total of 766 poll officials will man 166 polling booths.

The election was necessitated after sitting Congress legislator Arvind Khanna, who was considered close to former chief minister Amarinder Singh, resigned from the seat in January due to personal reasons.

The main contest this time is between the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal and the Congress. There are 12 candidates in the fray.

The Aam Aadmi Party, which had won the Sangrur Lok Sabha seat in the general election in May last year, is not contesting the by-election. Dhuri assembly segment is part of the Sangrur Lok Sabha seat.

If the Akali Dal wins the by-poll, the party will gain a simple majority in the 117-member assembly.

The Akali Dal has been running an alliance government with the BJP in Punjab since 2007. The alliance won the 2012 assembly polls also.