Punjab bypoll result: AAP’s win in Ludhiana West opens Parliament doors for Arvind Kejriwal
Arora (61), a Ludhiana-based industrialist, will now vacate his Rajya Sabha seat to move to state politics. This clears the way for the AAP to nominate a new member to the Upper House of Parliament, sparking speculation over whether Kejriwal himself might take the seat.
Before the elections, there were discussions and reports in political circles that fielding Arora for the bypoll was a strategic decision. Having lost his New Delhi MLA seat and the national capital in the February elections, AAP needed this bypoll victory for Kejriwal.
If Kejriwal chooses to enter Parliament, it will strengthen his position in the INDIA bloc as a Rajya Sabha MP, along with his role as an Opposition leader.
The calculation
In terms of numbers, it will be easy for any AAP nominee to enter the Rajya Sabha. In the 117-member Punjab Assembly, AAP has 94 legislators, the Congress has 16 MLAs, Shiromani Akali Dal has three, BJP two, and the Bahujan Samaj Party one. One seat is held by an Independent.
An AAP candidate would need 60 votes to enter the Upper House. The formula is (total votes in the Punjab Assembly / number of seats) + 1. In this case, it is (117/1) + 1 = 59.5, which rounds up to 60.
Speaking on the candidature, Delhi AAP president Saurabh Bharadwaj told ANI, “As far as the Rajya Sabha seat is concerned, the leadership, the PAC will sit together, discuss and send a good candidate.”
Punjab Minister Harpal Singh Cheema congratulated Arora on the win. “I would like to thank all voters in Ludhiana for the Ludhiana victory. Congratulations to all leaders of the party, national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, CM Bhagwant Mann, Sanjeev Arora, and all workers of the party. This is a victory of the party, of the government, of our work, of our policies… I think in the time to come, AAP will form a government in Punjab in 2027 again…”
The Ludhiana West assembly seat fell vacant following the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi in January. A total of 14 candidates contested the by-election.
AAP currently has seven Rajya Sabha members from Punjab:
1. Sandeep Pathak
2. Raghav Chadha
3. Harbhajan Singh (former cricketer)
4. Ashok Mittal
5. Balbir Singh Seechewal (environmentalist)
6. Vikramjit Singh Sahney (industrialist)
7. Sanjeev Arora (won the bypoll)
