Punjab By-Election: S S Mann’s Victory Is Worrisome; Not Because AAP’s Losing Shine
The results of a single Lok Sabha by-election are seldom sufficient to draw broad generalisations. That being said, SS Mann's Sangrur triumph for Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) is exceptional enough to be the outlier. Mann, a politician commonly regarded as "extreme", has beat the odds and defeated AAP with 35.6% of the vote share. Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann has held the Sangrur constituency in the previous two Parliamentary elections. Candidates from the SAD, Congress and BJP, three long-time administrators of Punjab, all forfeited their deposits. Mann's success may be attributed to a growing dissatisfaction with the AAP. However, it is vital to situate his victory in the context of SAD's decline and the tumultuous nature of Punjab. Politics and Sikhism go hand in hand in the SAD. In 1996, ...
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