Voting for the Lok Sabha by-poll in Jalandhar began at 8 am today amid tight security arrangements. Aam Aadmi Party candidate Sushil Kumar Rinku along with his family offered prayers at Guru Ravidas Maharaj Ji temple before casting his vote at Indo-German Senior Secondary School in Basti Danishmandan here.
Congress leader and former Punjab minister Pargat Singh also cast his vote.
After casting his vote, he said that Aam Admi Party (AAP) created hooliganism of such kind in the last few days, which never happened earlier in any Jalandhar elections.
While talking to ANI, Pargat Singh said, "Such hooliganism has never happened the way Aam Aadmi Party did in the last few days to win elections. By instilling fear in people's minds they want to win elections. We are in a mature democracy and it does not ask for such things. This is not healthy for our democracy".
He further stated that he is sure of a Congress win in bypoll elections.
"We are definitely going to win. AAP has not even put a brick in any part of Jalandhar. People know everything," he said.
The Aam Admi Party has fielded former Congress MLA Sushil Kumar Rinku while Bharatiya Janata Party has given the ticket to Inder Iqbal Singh Atwal in the Jalandhar Lok Sabha Bypolls.
From Congress, Karamjit Kaur Chaudhary is contesting the by-poll.
Earlier Chief Electoral Officer, Sibin C informed that the election machinery is working round the clock to ensure peaceful, free, and fair elections.
He said that there are as many as 16,21,759 electorates including 8,44,904 Males, 7,76,855 Females, 10,286 Persons with Disability, 1850 Service Electors, 73 Overseas Electors and 41 Transgender. There are 19 candidates in the fray including 15 Males and 4 Females.
Sibin C said that 1972 polling stations have been established and webcasting of all the polling stations is being done.
The Jalandhar Lok Sabha seat fell vacant following the death of Congress MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary.
Chaudhary died after a cardiac arrest while taking part in party leader Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra between Phillaur and Goraya towns in January this year.
The seat is likely to witness an intense battle between AAP, BJP, Congress, and Shiromani Akali Dal.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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