INC Fields Ashu for Ludhiana West By-poll

The Indian National Congress (INC) has named former Panjab minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu as its candidate for the Ludhiana West Assembly by-poll. This seat fell vacant when Aam Aadmi Party (APP) Member of the Legislative Assembly Gurpreet Bassi Gogi died in January 2025. INC president Mallikarjun Kharge has cleared Ashu’s nomination. The election date is yet to be announced. AAP has fielded Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament) member Sanjeev Arora from the constituency. Meanwhile, internal dissent persists within the Panjab INC. On 4 Apr, several senior figures, including former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, met INC state-in-charge Bhupesh Baghel in Delhi, raising concerns about state party chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa. They objected to a show-cause notice served to Khushaldeep Dhillon for airing his views on a television show and decried what they termed inadequate support for Ashu after his Vigilance Bureau arrest in a transportation case in September 2024. Warring dismissed the episode as internal party matters. Meanwhile, AAP is intensifying efforts to capture the Ludhiana West seat. AAP national leaders have congregated in the city, especially after the party’s poor showing in the Delhi election in February, which they fear could embolden INC to woo AAP MLAs. With CM Bhagwant Singh Mann’s prestige at stake, the government’s recent clampdown on protesting farmers and a pivot toward anti-drug campaigns are seen as attempts to galvanize local trading communities and restore AAP’s credibility. In another development, Shiromani Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Singh Badal claimed the AAP-led administration scaled back Z+ security for former minister Bikram Majithia as part of a witch-hunt; police clarified that Majithia’s security was only reduced, per threat assessment. Meanwhile, after recent reshuffling of officers in Panjab, four Indian Administrative Services officers, one Provincial Civil Service officer, and two Indian Police Service officers remain without new placements.