Counting begins for Gurdaspur Lok Sabha bypoll

Chandigarh: Counting of votes polled in the October 11 by-election to the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha constituency began on Sunday.

The counting was being conducted in centres in Gurdaspur and Pathankot towns.

The fate of 11 candidates will be decided by Sunday afternoon.

Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Swarn Salaria, Congress' Sunil Kumar Jakhar, and Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) Major General Suresh Kumar Khajuria (retd) are the main contenders.

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Nearly 56 per cent of the 15.22 lakh registered voters exercised their franchise for the seat.

The voter turnout was much lower than the over 70 per cent polling in the 2014 general elections.

The seat fell vacant in April following the passing away of veteran actor Vinod Khanna, a four-time MP from the seat.

The fight is crucial for the BJP which is trying to retain the seat, the Congress which recently came to power in Punjab and the AAP which is trying to emerge as a strong contender.