Matrimonial alliances go political: 2 couples win 4 Barnala wards

Bathinda: The Barnala municipal corporation (MC) elections threw up a strong family-politics trend, with two contesting couples sweeping adjoining wards. While an AAP couple and a BJP couple emerged victorious, an independent candidate won his seat but saw his wife lose by a narrow margin. BJP's Mamta Garg, meanwhile, extended her family's winning streak by becoming its third successive member to secure a municipal election victory.AAP's Kuldeep Dharma won from Ward 8, while his wife, Renu Dharma, won from Ward 9. BJP candidate Dharam Singh Fauzi won from Ward 28, while his wife, Sukhdial Kaur, won from Ward 27.Independent candidate Hem Raj Garg won from Ward 32, while his wife, Urmila Devi, lost as an independent candidate from Ward 33, which was hit by violence on polling day when supporters of the AAP candidate and Urmila Devi clashed. Garg was so confident about his victory from his ward that he devoted most of his time compaigning for his wife. "I consider my ward as my family and residents of my ward come to me without any hesitation to get their grievances addressed. Our continued association proved beneficial for our victories in both the wards," said Dharma.Fauzi called himself a "committed soldier of BJP". "The party reposed faith in me by providing two tickets in my family. We proved the party's decision right by winning from both seats," Fauzi said.Garg credited his victory to his remaining among the people of his ward. "They, in fact, asked me to concentrate on Ward 33, where my wife was contesting for the first time," said Garg.AAP functionary Dheeraj Daddahoor refuted charges of highhandedness. BJP's Mamta Garg, who won from Ward 41, becoming the third member from her family to win the MC election. She won by one of the biggest margins in Barnala. Her father-in-law, Raghbir Prakash, won in 2016 and her husband, Narinder Garg, in 2021.