Big setback for Congress in Chandigarh ahead of Punjab polls

New Delhi, Dec 27 (IANS) The Congress suffered a major setback in the Chandigarh municipal polls ahead of the crucial Assembly elections in the state as the AAP emerged as the single largest party followed by the BJP.The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which was contesting the elections for the first time, has registered an impressive performance. The Congress, which was aiming to defeat the BJP, has been pushed to the third place as per the trends and results in the afternoon.AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal said that "this victory in Chandigarh is a sign of upcoming change in Punjab."But the Congress has not reacted to the results and is waiting for the final outcome.The Congress, which was already facing an anti-incumbency factor in Punjab, will have to fight a three-front battle -- the resurgent AAP, the BJP-Amarinder Singh and the Akali Dal-BSP fronts. The party which was hoping to reap dividends from the farmers' agitation has to rethink its strategy after the unions forged a political party in the state.The Congress, which is mired in infighting in the state, will have to gear up for the Punjab polls. There may not be an easy walkover in the Assembly polls as the Congress had thought after replacing Amarinder Singh as the Chief Minister in the state and appointing Charanjit Singh Channi to get the Scheduled Caste votes, which is the highest in the country, but the recent issues of sacrilege and lynching has put the Chief Minister on the back foot.The AAP has won 14 out of the 35 seats in the Chandigarh Municipal polls, the BJP bagged 12 seats, the Congress has won only eight seats and has been pushed to the third spot, while the SAD won only one seat.
--IANS miz/dpb/bg

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