Voting begins for Punjab municipal elections

Voting for the Punjab municipal elections began on Sunday, Election Commission officials said here.

Polling began at 8 a.m. and will continue till 4 p.m.

The main contest is among the ruling Congress, main opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP alliance.

Local issues of towns and cities and the respective wards dominated the campaigning for the municipal elections.

The voting is being held for three municipal corporations of Amritsar, Jalandhar and Patiala, and 29 municipal councils and Nagar Panchayats.

The results will be declared on Sunday evening.

The election for the municipal corporation of Punjab's largest city, Ludhiana, was not being held as the electoral rolls were not updated.

Candidates in 90 wards have won unopposed, the spokesman said.

There are 873 polling stations and 1,938 polling booths across the state.

A total of 8,000 election staff and 15,500 police personnel have been assigned for poll duty.

The Akali Dal-BJP and AAP had accused the Congress of misusing its power in the run-up to the municipal polls.

A total of 413 candidates are in the fray in 85 wards of Amritsar where 769,153 voters will exercise their franchise.

In Jalandhar, 305 candidates are contesting from 80 wards.

In Patiala, election will be held in 57 wards in which 260,664 voters can exercise their franchise.

This is the first big election in the state after the Congress government, led by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, came to power after the assembly polls in March.

The Congress won 77 out of 117 seats in the assembly. The AAP finished second with 20 seats.

--IANS

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