New Delhi: Sikh separatist Amritpal Singh, contesting the polls in Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha seat from an Assam jail, and Engineer Rashid, who is lodged in Delhi’s Tihar Jail and contesting from Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir, are leading from their respective seats, according to initial trends released by the Election Commission of India.
Amritpal, who contested as an independent candidate and was pitted against Kulbir Singh Zira of the Congress, is leading by over 1,44,000 votes, as of 2:45 PM, according to Election Commission data.
Rashid, who was up against former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah, is leading by a margin of more than 1,75,000 votes. Rashid’s son Abrar was campaigning for him in Baramulla, and managed to draw massive crowds, especially youngsters, in his rallies.
Rashid is the only prominent independent candidate in Jammu and Kashmir, which is witnessing elections for the first time after the abrogation of Article 370.
In jail since 2019 after the Lok Sabha elections that year, Rashid is charged under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for alleged terror funding. In 2019, Rashid had stood third from the same constituency securing over 1 lakh votes.
Amritpal, the chief of Waris Punjab De, was charged under the National Security Act in 2023, and is lodged in a Dibrugarh jail in Assam.
The police had first attempted to crack down on Amritpal and his associates in Punjab on 18 March, arresting hundreds of his supporters. Singh had managed to escape at the time, but was later arrested and detained on 23 April 2023. His election affidavit said that he has 12 criminal cases against him.
Meanwhile, Sarabjit Singh Khalsa, son of Beant Singh — one of the bodyguards of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who had assassinated her — is contesting from Faridkot in Punjab, and is leading by nearly 60,000 votes against Aam Aadmi Party’s Karamjit Singh Anmol, as of 2:45 PM.
Of the 13 seats in Punjab, Congress is so far leading in six, AAP in three and Shiromani Akali Dal in two. Two others are led by independent candidates, Amritpal and Sarabjit.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)