Ready to contest Lok Sabha polls from Patiala if BJP wants: Preneet Kaur

CHANDIGARH: Four-time Patiala MP and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Preneet Kaur has expressed her willingness to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from the Patiala seat. "If BJP wants, then I will contest (from Patiala)," she said, indicating her readiness to serve the party's interests.

Kaur is no stranger to politics. Kaur a four-time Patiala MP and former Congress leader is the wife of Amarinder Singh, the former Chief Minister of Punjab, who also switched his allegiance from the Congress to the BJP in 2022. Notably, Preneet Kaur was suspended from Congress for indulging in anti-party activities and helping the BJP.

Her political career includes multiple successful runs in the Lok Sabha elections. She was first elected to the 13th Lok Sabha in 1999 and was re-elected in 2004.Kaur won the elections in 2009 and 2019 and was re-elected to the Lok Sabha.

The upcoming Lok Sabha elections, scheduled to be held in seven phases starting April 19. The counting of votes is slated for June 4. In Punjab, voting for the 13 Lok Sabha seats will take place on June 1. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged victorious with 303 seats, while the Indian National Congress (INC) managed to secure only 52 seats.

This was a significant increase from the 2014 elections, where the BJP won 282 seats and the INC got 44 seats. In Punjab, the 2019 elections saw the INC winning 8 seats, while the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 2 seats each. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) managed to win only one seat. In 2014 elections the SAD and AAP won 4 seats each, the INC won 3 seats, and the BJP secured 2 seats