Political temperature likely to soar as Cong names Ashu for bypoll

With Bharat Bhushan Ashu being declared as the Congress candidate for the Ludhiana (West) Assembly bypoll, the political temperature in the city is expected to soar further in coming days.

His candidature was approved by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, according to a press release issued by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) late on Friday evening. Later, supporters celebrated Ashu’s candidature by distributing laddoos.

At present, Ashu is working president of the Punjab Congress and has represented the Ludhiana (West) seat twice in the past. Ashu had won from Ludhiana West in 2012 and 2017 consecutively, and remained the Food and Civil Supplies Minister during the previous Congress government.

After the announcement of his name, Ashu said the opportunity reflects the party’s faith in grassroots leadership and its unwavering resolve to champion aspirations of the people.

“With blessings of our visionary leaders and the strength of the people, I pledge to serve with unwavering dedication, upholds the Congress legacy of integrity and fight for progress, justice and inclusive development in line with our party’s ideology,” he said.

AAP has already named Rajya Sabha member Sanjeev Arora as its candidate. The 61-year-old has been a member of the Rajya Sabha since 2022. After Arora’s name was announced, it had sparked speculation about AAP preparing ground for its national convener Arvind Kejriwal to enter Parliament via Rajya Sabha.

Meanwhile, Ashu has accused the AAP government of plunging Punjab into a governance crisis. He alleged that law and order had deteriorated under the present government and people have lost confidence in the state administration.

He also criticised AAP’s decision to field Sanjeev Arora in the byelections, calling it a politically-motivated move aimed at securing a Rajya Sabha seat for Arvind Kejriwal and flayed AAP for sidelining Gurpreet Gogi’s family, who, according to him, were initially promised the ticket but were later ignored in favour of Arora.

The Ludhiana West seat fell vacant following the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Gogi in January. Gogi, a first-time MLA, had defeated Ashu in 2022 Punjab Assembly elections by 7,500 votes.

The date for the bypoll has not been announced yet.

Turn of events

After AAP came to power in 2022, Bharat Bhushan Ashu was arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau in the alleged multi-crore foodgrain transportation scam. He remained in jail for nearly seven months before getting bail from the High Court in March 2023. Later, he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in August 2024 for alleged money laundering related to the same case. He got bail in December 2024. In the same month, the HC quashed FIRs registered against him by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau, calling the same as ‘pure vendetta’.

Meanwhile, a meeting followed by the press conference was held by the Congress here after the declaration of Bharat Bhushan Ashu as candidate for the bypoll.

Former Chief Minister Charanjit Channi and MLA Pargat Singh were also present in the meeting. They said they would keep a watch and ensure the elections were held in a fair manner and not let the ruling party do any injustice.

Channi said he would be camping in Ludhiana till the elections were held.

Congress secretary in-charge for Punjab Alok Sharma while addressing the media said the party was confident that Ashu would win the seat. “People will remember development works done by him while the present government had only looted the people,” he said.

Ashu said there was enthusiasm among party workers and they were confident of the win. “Fielding Sanjeev Arora from Ludhiana West is actually a trick to get the Rajya Sabha seat vacant for Arvind Kejriwal. Wife of deceased MLA Gurpreet Gogi was promised the ticket but the party ignored her and fielded Arora,” he said.

District Congress Committee president Sanjay Talwar and state party president remained absent from the meeting. When asked about their absence, Channi said they could be busy in something and denied any factionalism in the party.

Ludhiana