Congress leader and former Union Minister Manish Tewari, the Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc candidate for Chandigarh, wrested the seat from the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP)’s Sanjay Tandon. Mr. Tewari secured nearly 2.16 lakh votes and won by a slender margin of 2,504 votes.
Mr. Tewari was fielded jointly by Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to take on Mr. Tandon, who replaced the sitting Lok Sabha member Kirron Kher. The BJP won Chandigarh Lok Sabha in the general elections of 2014 and 2019. The BJP’s decision to drop Ms. Kher to offset anti-incumbency appears to have not worked. The Congress targeted the BJP over its “non-performance” and “unfulfilled promises” during the last ten years in the city. The campaign of the INDIA bloc candidate was centred around local issues. However, Mr. Tewari also talked spoke about the “threat” to democracy and the Constitution in his campaign speeches.
Published - June 05, 2024 12:24 am IST
