Violence in Punjab Civic Body Elections

May 28, 2026

The voting took place in Punjab for 8 municipal corporations, 75 municipal councils, and 20 nagar panchayats on Tuesday. Voters exercised their franchise at 3,977 polling stations. Of these, 740 were declared “sensitive” and 274 as “highly sensitive.” Despite the scorching heat, voters stepped out of their homes to cast their votes. True to Punjab’s tradition, elections in the state generally conclude without any major riots or disturbances. This time was no exception, although clashes and stone-pelting were reported in a few locations. In Samana, Patiala, stone-pelting ensued between the police and a crowd. There were also reports of a young man sustaining an electric shock. In Ludhiana, a social media influencer who got into an argument with MLA Sarabjit Kaur Manuke was beaten up; AAP supporters were alleged to be behind the attack. Minor skirmishes were also reported in Khanna, Barnala, and Sangrur. In Raikot, Congress candidate Jagdev Singh was attacked by a group of individuals, sustaining serious injuries. Given his critical condition, he has been referred to the DMC Hospital in Ludhiana. A notable feature of this election was that voting was conducted using ballot papers rather than Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). A petition had been filed in the High Court challenging the use of ballot papers; however, the High Court ruled that there was insufficient time remaining to implement the necessary changes required for an alternative voting method. The fate of approximately 7,555 candidates in these civic body elections has now been sealed within the ballot boxes. The electoral rolls for these elections listed 3.5 million registered voters. To ensure the smooth conduct of the polls, 32,000 security personnel were deployed. While there were indeed sporadic clashes between supporters of opposition parties and the ruling party in certain areas, overall, the elections concluded without any major unrest. In these civic body elections, the Aam Aadmi Party fielded the highest number of candidates, with 1,801 in the fray; the Congress had 1,550 candidates, the BJP 1,316, and the Shiromani Akali Dal 1,251 candidates trying their luck. Additionally, the Bahujan Samaj Party fielded 96 candidates, while there were 1,528 independent candidates. Thirteen candidates were categorized under the ‘Others’ category. As per the Election Commission’s directives, after 5:00 PM, only those voters who were already standing in queues were permitted to cast their votes. The elections for the Kharar Municipal Council and the Ajnala Nagar Panchayat could not be held during this phase, as the delimitation process for these bodies had not yet been completed. The results of these elections will be declared on May 29, and all eyes will be fixed on them.