The Patiala Lok Sabha Constituency could bear witness to a big fight between the strong contendors of the 2024 elections, Congress, BJP and AAP. According to sources, rivals BJP and Congress could go face to face for the Patiala Lok Sabha Seat. The seat has been the shining jewel for the Captain Amarinder Singh's family, as his wife Preneet Kaur had secured the seat twice in previous Lok Sabha Elections, albeit for Congress. This time however sources indicate that Congress could likely be fielding Vijay Inder Singla or Navjot Singh Sidhu, as Preneet Kaur is likely to make a big move to BJP by Thursday. AAP is likely to field Health Minister Dr. Balbir Singh as its prospective candidate which could put up a tough challenge for the BJP. In the same vein, Akali Dal is likely to bet on Surjit Singh Rakhra for the Patiala Lok Sabha seat, if no alliance with BJP takes place.
In the last five elections, Congress has won four times while AAP has won only once. BJP has traditionally fought in alliance with Akali Dal in Punjab while fielding its own candidates from Amritsar, Hoshiarpur and Gurdaspur. But sources inform that in case of an alliance this year, BJP is looking to ask for the Patiala seat from Akali Dal as well. If this happens then Preneet Kaur is likely to be the contender for the seat from Akali-BJP, however if not, then Akali Dal is likely to field Surjit Singh Rakhra as its own candidate, resulting in a 4-way fight between Congress, AAP, Akali Dal and BJP. SAD has not been able to win the Lok Sabha elections from here for a long time and breaking alliance with BJP is also harmful for it according to political experts. However, experts also say that Preneet Kaur's move to BJP could also be stepback with the appearance of strong contenders from the opposition party.
Although the scenario is not very clear as of now as a Congress candidate, former Sangrur MP Vijay Indar Singla has staked a claim for the ticket. His father Late. Satram Sigla had been an MLA from Congress in Samana assembly constituency under Patiala’s parliamentary seat. The separation of the Captain family has created difficulties for Congress. The name of Cabinet Minister Dr. Balbir Singh is being discussed with AAP, who had defeated former mayor Sanjeev Sharma Bittu in the last assembly elections of Punjab.
It is also important to note that there has been dismay among voters of Preneet Kaur's supporters as various promises were made which have not been fullfilled. However, among these, the promise for the Rajpura railway line has been fulfilled, however a number of other issues such as drug addiction and the drinking water crisis were not raised in the Parliament by Preneet Kaur.
Previous Victors in Patiala:
| Year: | Winner: | Party: |
| 2004 | Preneet Kaur | Congress |
| 2009 | Preneet Kaur | Congress |
| 2014 | Dr. Dharamveer Gandhi | Aam Aadmi Party |
| 2019 | Preneet Kaur | Congress |
Issues in Patiala promised to be raised by current MP Preneet Kaur:
|
State Issues: |
Local Issues: |
|
Drug Addiction in Punjab (not addressed) The MP did not even raise the issue of drugs in the House which is a serious problem of the state including Patiala. The problem of drug addiction still persists in the district while drugs are being sold indiscriminately in the state. However, the MP has failed to address this in the Parliament. |
Decreasing water levels in Punjab (addressed) The MP had promised to raise the serious problem of drinking water crisis in Parliament. Under this, she had raised the question twice in the Parliament as to what policy has been made by the government regarding the decreasing water level in Punjab. |
|
Shortage of doctors and nerves (not addressed): Preneet Kaur did not raise any questions in Parliament on the shortage of doctors, nurses and medicines. However, she had raised questions regarding the free facilities provided to pregnant women, sick newborns and infants under the Janani Shishu Suraksha Program during the Corona period and the impact of Corona on the rural health system. The issue of export of co-vaccine and Covishield was also raised. |
Industry problems (not addressed): The MP had talked about resolving the issue of setting up a new industry in Patiala and increasing facilities in the focal point. However, she did not ask a single question regarding this in Parliament. The condition of the industry in Patiala has still not improved. |
|
Expensive Education (not adressed) Preneet Kaur had promised to raise questions in Parliament on education becoming expensive every year. She did not ask any questions in this regard. However, she says that during her fourth tenure she had especially focused on developing Patiala as a big learning centre |
Rajpura-Bathinda double rail line (addressed): Preneet Kaur had promised to start the Rajpura-Bathinda Hubli Rail Line which has now come to fruition. She had asked a question in Parliament seeking information about the status of the project to connect Rajpura with Chandigarh through rail. |
Patiala Voter Details:
| Constituency | Polling Stations | Male voters: | Female Voters: | Transgender: | Total: |
| Patiala | 2077 | 9,35,238 | 8,52,433 | 76 | 1787747 |