Chandigarh:
Four hours after counting began this morning, Punjab is too close to call. Leads show the Shiromani Akali Dal leading in 59 of 117 seats might just be able to return to power with a slim majority. The Congress was leading in about 55, a gain of around 11 seats.
Early leads show that while the Akalis are doing well, the BJP is doing worse in these elections than the last time. However, the Akali Dal told NDTV that they don't think of the BJP as a liability. "The BJP was assigned 23 seats last time and won 19. This time, they are down to about 13, according to the leads. We expected this," Naresh Gujral, a Rajya Sabha MP said.
As expected, the Congress is doing well in urban areas. Captain Amarinder Singh, who is the Congress candidate for chief minister, told NDTV he is confident that his party will win.
However, in a major setback, his son Raninder was trailing in the Samana assembly seat in Patiala district of Punjab.
Raninder, whose mother is union Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur, was trailing behind his Akali Dal rival Surjit Singh Rakhra by over 1,600 votes.
Punjab has a long tradition of voting out whoever is in power. The Shiromani Akali Dal led by chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has been hit by a family feud - his nephew and former finance minister Manpreet Badal has formed his own party, the People's Party of Punjab. However, out of the two seats Manpreet Badal was contesting, he lost from Maur and was trailing in Gidderbaha.
Early leads show that while the Akalis are doing well, the BJP is doing worse in these elections than the last time. However, the Akali Dal told NDTV that they don't think of the BJP as a liability. "The BJP was assigned 23 seats last time and won 19. This time, they are down to about 13, according to the leads. We expected this," Naresh Gujral, a Rajya Sabha MP said.
As expected, the Congress is doing well in urban areas. Captain Amarinder Singh, who is the Congress candidate for chief minister, told NDTV he is confident that his party will win.
However, in a major setback, his son Raninder was trailing in the Samana assembly seat in Patiala district of Punjab.
Raninder, whose mother is union Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur, was trailing behind his Akali Dal rival Surjit Singh Rakhra by over 1,600 votes.
Punjab has a long tradition of voting out whoever is in power. The Shiromani Akali Dal led by chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has been hit by a family feud - his nephew and former finance minister Manpreet Badal has formed his own party, the People's Party of Punjab. However, out of the two seats Manpreet Badal was contesting, he lost from Maur and was trailing in Gidderbaha.
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