Gurdaspur Lok Sabha bypoll: Voting begins amid tight security

Voting for Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat by-poll began on Wednesday morning which fell vacant after the demise of actor-turned-politician Vinod Khanna of the BJP in April this year. The voting started at 8 am and peaceful so far.  

Here are the Live updates-

# Voting for Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat by-poll begins

The election is being seen as a barometer for the popularity of the six-month-old Congress government in Punjab.

While the Congress has fielded its Punjab unit chief Sunil Jakhar, the BJP has put up businessman Swaran Salaria. The AAP has placed a bet on Major General (retd) Suresh Khajuria.

Punjab: Voting for Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat by-poll begins; BJP's Swaran Salaria and Congress' Sunil Jakhar contesting. pic.twitter.com/OhnanT2DeF

— ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2017

As many as 15.22 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the by-election being fought by 11 candidates. Of the total electorate of 15,22,922 in the constituency, 7,12,077 are women and 14 belong to a third gender, official said.

Around 30 companies of paramilitary forces and 7,000 Punjab police personnel have been deployed in the constituency.