"Will continue working for Amritsar's development": BJP's Taranjit Sandhu

Amritsar (Punjab) [India], June 5 (ANI): Extended gratitude to the party workers and the people of Amritsar for supporting him in the Lok Sabha polls, former envoy and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu on Wednesday said that he would continue working for the development of the Lok Sabha seat.
Notably, the former ambassador to the US lost to Congress' Gurjeet Singh Aujla in the Lok Sabha polls.
"I thank all the workers of BJP and the people of Amritsar city who entrusted their faith in me. If any BJP worker or any person wants to meet me, I will be there for them at my Amritsar residence. I will stay here in Amritsar and keep working for the people here," Addressing a press conference in Amritsar
Sandhu stood third in the Amritsar Lok Sabha segment despite his very strong Sikh credentials as he is the grandson of the late Teja Singh Samundri, one of the founding members of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). He was defeated by over 47,000 votes.
In a highly competitive Lok Sabha election with multiple contenders, Congress managed to retain its seven seats in Punjab, equaling its previous tally.
The BJP saw a dismal turnout in Punjab and Haryana in the Lok Sabha election results declared on Tuesday. While the party failed to win any seats in Punjab, it lost five seats in neighbouring Haryana, where it had won all 10 seats last time.
The BJP nearly doubled its vote share in Punjab but could not retain the two seats it had won in 2019. The party lost half of its seats and 12 per cent of its vote share to the Congress in Haryana.
As per the results of the Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission of India declared results for 542 of the 543 Lok Sabha constituencies, with the BJP winning 240 seats and the Congress 99.
The BJP victory tally was much lower than its 2019 tally of 303 and the 282 seats it had won in 2014.
The Congress, on the other hand, registered a strong growth, winning 99 seats compared to 52 that it had won in 2019 and 44 seats in 2014.
The INDIA bloc crossed the 230 mark, posing stiff competition, and defying all predictions from exit polls.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has secured a third term, but the BJP will need to rely on the support of other parties in his coalition - JD (U) chief Nitish Kumar and TDP's chief Chandrababu Naidu.
The BJP fell 32 seats short of the 272 majority mark after votes polled in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were counted. For the first time, since the Bharatiya Janata Party swept to power in 2014, it did not secure a majority on its own.
Meanwhile, the NDA leaders met her today at Prime Minister Modi's residence.
The opposition INDIA bloc will also meet today with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge calling alliance leaders for the meet at his house.
Having witnessed a favorable outcome in the LS polls, the leaders of the INDIA bloc will strategize their next move. (ANI)