Says state repression led to a record low voter turnout, forcing Congress to boycott the elections even as SAD remained steadfast in opposing AAP.
Sharing details of how this had been done, she said: “First of all officers were changed starting from the SSP to SHOs as well as the deputy commissioner and the sub divisional magistrates. Then handpicked officers were deputed to prevent the opposition from contesting that resulted in AAP candidates being declared elected unopposed in 22 of the 33 block samiti seats.”
Asserting that the AAP government was not content with this, she said: “On December 14, voting day, large-scale rigging was done by AAP goons who turned cameras away from ballot boxes and stuffed them with ballot papers of AAP candidates. She said in the Tarsika zila parishad zone, 12-13 boxes were even sent to a different counting centre without giving notice to the candidate. Even women were not spared with a woman lawyer being slapped. The aim was simple. To loot the elections by hook or by crook.”
Stating that the SAD decided to remain in the field despite a boycott by the Congress, Ganieve Majithia said police threatened SAD supporters with false cases. “I salute the candidates and supporters who stood up to the police oppression and voted for the SAD in large numbers.”
She said the fact that the AAP took such desperate measures to steal the elections proved that the ruling party knew that it would suffer a humiliating defeat in case of a free and fair poll. Asserting that the Majithia family would continue to take up people’s issues forcefully, the MLA said: “Punjabis have never tolerated tyranny and will give an appropriate answer to the AAP when the assembly elections are held in a free and fair manner in 2027.”
