Tarn Taran by-election: AAP holds the seat as the Panthic vote splits

Who: Harmeet Singh Sandhu of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won with 42,649 votes. Sukhwinder Kaur Randhawa of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) came second with 30,558. Mandeep Singh Khalsa finished third with 19,620 votes. According to The Tribune he was backed jointly by Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De), the Akali Dal faction led by Giani Harpreet Singh (Punar Surjit) and the party of Simranjit Singh Mann. Congress was fourth with 15,078 votes and the BJP fifth with 6,239. Both lost their deposits.

What: The seat fell vacant after the death of AAP MLA Dr Kashmir Singh Sohal in June 2025. Voting took place on November 11, 2025, with a turnout of 60.95 per cent, and counting on November 14. Randhawa led in the first three rounds. AAP pulled ahead from the fourth round and won by 12,091 votes. The BJP had campaigned with two chief ministers and several Union ministers.

Where: Tarn Taran, in the Majha region. The seat lies inside the Khadoor Sahib parliamentary constituency, held by Amritpal Singh, who has been detained in Assam since 2023. The Tribune noted that in the previous Lok Sabha election Amritpal had led his nearest rival in this segment by about 24,000 votes.

Why it mattered: The contest was read as a test of Akali and Panthic politics before the February 2027 Assembly elections. The Tribune's analysis said the Badal-led Akali Dal had bounced back and commanded the Panthic nerve in the seat. Analysts quoted by The Wire called the result a revival for the Akali Dal and credited its work during the Punjab floods. For Waris Punjab De the result was a setback. The Tribune reported that its fortunes had sharply declined within a year, and analysts said it had not appointed leaders at the grassroots or opened an office in Khadoor Sahib. The Tribune's editorial credited AAP's organisational strength and a fractured opposition for the margin. Congress was blamed for factionalism and weak leadership.