Punjab will witness the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 voting on June 1, 2024, in the seventh phase. On 14th May 2024, 598 nominations were filed for assembly elections. On May 18, 2024, after proper scrutiny list of candidates will be released. Punjab will get a clear picture of which candidate will contest elections from which constituency. For the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections, Punjab is gearing up for 5 biggest face offs. All major political parties i.e. AAP, BJP, Congress and SAD have their eye on the results of these biggest face-offs from different state constituencies.
Punjab’s five biggest face-offs will happen from constituencies that include Amritsar, Patiala, Bathinda, Ludhiana and Jalandhar. Let’s delve deep into it and understand why everyone has their eyes set on these seats and results.
Amritsar
The major candidates who will be contesting elections from this seat are Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal (AAP), Taranjit Singh Sandhu (BJP), Gurmeet Aujla (Congress), and Anil Joshi (SAD). It is considered as one of the biggest face-offs because all candidates enjoy a good repo among the people of Amritsar. Also, all these candidates are considered very close to their party conveners so their win would be very important.
| Name Of Candidate | Pros | Cons |
| Kuldeep Dhaliwal | He is the Jaat face of Amritsar. Dhaliwal enjoys a good image and has a lot of support from NRIs. Also, the freebies given by AAP may add on to his chances of winning | Amritsar has lot of issues like cleanliness, sanitation, lack of law and order, etc. As these issues have not been solved till now, people have lost some trust in his working |
| Taranjit Singh Sandhu | His grandfather had been the SGPC founder and one of the biggest leaders of SAD. He is considered to be PM Modi's favourite and can get support from Hindu voters | This is the first time that he'll be contesting for elections. Also, BJP is facing a lot of opposition from the farmers which can be a hindrance for him. |
| Gurmeet Aujla | He won the 2017 by-elections and the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. It's a traditional seat of Congress | There has been an internal fight going on in the party after he was selected as contesting candidate. He might not receive enough support from party members. Also, he has done nothing major for the people |
| Anil Joshi | There are chances that he might get the support of both BJP as well as SAD voters because of his popularity among them. | It is for the first time that he'll contesting from SAD's side after 35 years. He might not get support as he has changes the party. |
Patiala
The major candidates who will be contesting elections from this seat are Dr. Balbir Sidhu (AAP), Preneet Kaur (BJP), Dr. Dharamvir Gandhi (Congress), and N.K. Sharma (SAD). This constituency has become the hot seat for upcoming elections as all the famous faces are contesting for the seats. On the side it’s Preneet Kaur who had won from Patiala two times, then comes Dr. Balbir who is the health minister of Punjab, then Dharamvir Gandhi who has won over Preneet Kaur once and lastly N.K. Sharma is a famous builder. It would be interesting to see who will take hold of Patiala this time.
| Name Of Candidate | Pros | Cons |
| Preneet Kaur | She is Capt. Amarinder Singh's wife and his family has a stronghold in Patiala. She has for two times from Patiala. | She has changed the party and will be contesting from BJP. BJP might not get many votes due to ongoing farmers' protest. |
| Dr. Dharamvir Gandhi | He has been the MP and has also defeated two-time winner Prennet Kaur. He also has a good image among people. | Inside the Congress party, other members are not happy with his selection. He is not getting enough support from members as well as there is no pace in campaigning. |
| Dr. Balbir Sidhu | He might enjoy good amount of votes as the AAP Mohalla Clinics have really helped the people in the city. | Certain employee unions have been protesting against him which might be an obstacle in the win. |
| N.K. Sharma | As he is one of the biggest builders so Patiala might see certain developments if he wins the elections. | It's for the first time he'll be contesting elections. He is a new face and people don't know much about him. |
Bathinda
The major candidates who will be contesting elections from this seat are Gurmeet Singh Khuddiyan (AAP), Parampal Kaur Sidhu (BJP), Jeet Mohinder (Congress), and Harsimrat Kaur Badal (SAD). It is a very important seat for Shiromani Akali Dal. Parampal Kaur and Harsimrat Kaur Badal will be coming face to face for the first time. It would be interesting to watch when two candidates who were earlier in the same party will be going against each other.
| Name Of Candidate | Pros | Cons |
| Harsimrat Kaur Badal | She enjoys good support in the city and has won three times. | Parampal Kaur who has now gone to BJP, her father in-law enjoys massive support from SAD. There are chances that some votes might shift to BJP. |
| Parampal Kaur Sidhu | Because of her father-in-law, she might get a section of SAD votes on her side. | BJP might not get support due to farmers' protest going on. Manpreet Badal who has a good image in Bathinda has also not come in her support till now. |
| Jeet Mohinder | He has a good image among the people of Bathinda. In the fight between BJP and SAD, Congress might garner some votes. | After leaving SAD, Jeet Mohinder has joined Congress and might not get enough support. |
| Gurmeet Singh Khuddiyan | The freebies given by AAP may add to him winning the elections | As he is the agriculture minister, still did not support farmers after their crops were destroyed. This might fall back on him. |
Ludhiana
The major candidates who will be contesting elections from this seat are Ashok Parashar (AAP), Ravneet Bittu (BJP), Amrinder Singh Raja Warring (Congress), and Ranjit Singh (SAD). It is one of the most important seats for Congress President Rahul Gandhi after Ravneet Bittu joined BJP. Ludhiana will witness an interesting face-off as some known faces will be contesting against some unknown faces who have higher chances of winning.
| Name Of Candidate | Pros | Cons |
| Ashok Parashar | He is a Hindu candidate and has a good image. He might garner some votes in the name of freebies. | As he is a turncoat so there is a lack of trust for him among the people. He also does not have the internal support of party members. |
| Ravneet Bittu | He is quite popular in the constituency. He might turn some of the Congress votes towards himself. | He is facing opposition in the villages due to ongoing farmers protest which might be an obstacle. |
| Amrinder Singh Raja Warring | AAP's candidate is quite weak in from of Warring. Congress is showing immense support to him and is campaigning in full swing. | As many Congress members still support Bittu, there are chances of him getting backstabbed. |
| Ranjit Singh | His image is good and people might want to give him a chance. | In Ludhiana, it might be difficult for SAD to win votes without BJP's support. |
Jalandhar
The major candidates who will be contesting elections from this seat are Pawan Kumar Tinu (AAP), Sushil Kumar Rinku (BJP), Charanjit Singh Channi (Congress), and Mohinder Singh Kaypee (SAD). Jalandhar would again be an interesting face-off for upcoming assembly elections. As Channi and Tini who are known Dalit faces would be fighting against Sushil Rinku who has changed party third time but enjoys good repo among Jalandhar residents.
| Name Of Candidate | Pros | Cons |
| Sushil Kumar Rinku | He has done a great amount of work when he won elections the last time. He is a known Dalit face in Jalandhar and might get the hindu votes. | He is a turncoat and has changed parties three times so people might not trust him. BJP might get less votes due to farmers' protest. |
| Charanjit Singh Channi | He has been the former CM of Punjab and is a famous Dalit face of Jalandhar. | He has been into different controversies which has spoilt his image a bit. There is less internal support for him inside party. |
| Mohinder Singh Kaypee | He is also a Dalit face of Jalandhar and Channi's relative. He has a good and clean image. | He has stayed away from politics and without BJP's support, SAD's vote bank might decrease. |
| Pawan Kumar Tinu | He is popular among the local people and enjoys a good image. Has never been into any controversy and has good political experience. | He is a turncoat so people might not want to give him a chance. |