Chandigarh Lok Sabha Election 2024 Exit Poll Results: Close contest between BJP and Congress

NEW DELHI: The Congress is expected to secure the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Union Territory of Chandigarh for the third consecutive time with exit polls on Saturday predicting that the party’s candidate Manish Tewari will come out on top against BJP’s Sanjay Tandon.
Voting for the Chandigarh Lok Sabha constituency was held on June 1.
In the 2019 and 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP’s Kirron Anupam Kher won the seat with a voteshare of 50.64% and 42.20% respectively.The sitting MP was replaced by Tandon, allegedly due to health concerns.
For the first time, the Congress is contesting the Chandigarh elections in alliance with AAP. While on the other hand, BJP and its traditional ally, Shiromani Akali Dal, have decided to part ways for this election.
For Manish Tewari, a two-time MP and former Union minister aged 58, this election holds special significance as it marks a homecoming he has awaited since the 2009 polls.However, the Congress leadership, since 1991, consistently placed their trust in veteran functionary Pawan Kumar Bansal, who maintained a firm grip on the city's political landscape, resisting the entry of any new contenders.
Bansal secured victory in four out of the eight elections he contested, notably winning three consecutive terms in 1999, 2004, and 2009. However, he faced significant defeats in the last two Lok Sabha polls, losing to Kher.