The Jalandhar Lok Sabha by-election seat fell vacant after sudden demise of Congress MP Santokh Singh Choudhary. Jalandhar MP suffered a heart attack during Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra and passed away on 14th January 2023. After much wait, the election commission finally announced the date for the election. The Election Commission of India announced the dates for the by-elections, which will go to polls on May 10. All the political parties- Congress, Aam Aadmi Party, Bhartiya Janta Party, and Shiromani Akali Dal have geared up political activities to win the elections. Till now AAP and Congress have announced its candidate while BJP is likely to make the announcement soon.
BJP will decide it’s Jalandhar candidate on the 9th of April following the parliamentary vote at its Delhi headquarters, chaired by PM Narendra Modi. The Karnataka assembly election candidate will also be finalized at this meeting. BJP sources state that a list of candidates has been prepared, which includes Jalandhar’s former DCP Rajinder Singh, BJP Punjab’s General Secretary Rajesh Baga and SC Commission India chairman Vijay Sampla. There is a possibility of a surprise candidate, as they have been speaking with a member of congress and one from SAD, with both options on their radar. This SAD leader was set to be the candidate for the Akali Dal, but there is a possibility that SAD will vacate this seat for the BSP to contest. This has not been finalized between the two parties yet though.