Jalandhar North is emerging as an important constituency to watch ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, particularly amid speculation over a possible reunion between the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The 2022 election results offer an interesting starting point for understanding the constituency's political calculations, although any possible alliance will have to contend with a changed political landscape.
In the 2022 Assembly elections, Congress candidate Avtar Singh Junior won Jalandhar North with 47,338 votes. BJP's K.D. Bhandari finished second with 37,852 votes, while AAP's Dinesh Dhall secured 32,685 votes.
BSP candidate Kuldip Singh Lubana received 6,153 votes, while Gurpartap Singh of Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) polled 1,610 votes.
The combined votes secured by BJP and BSP candidates in 2022 stood at 44,005. This was 3,333 votes fewer than Congress's winning tally of 47,338.
The calculation is significant because BSP was an alliance partner of SAD during the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections, while BJP contested separately.
It is also important to distinguish Gurpartap Singh's 1,610 votes from SAD's vote base. He contested on the SAD (Amritsar) ticket, not the Sukhbir Singh Badal-led Shiromani Akali Dal.
One of the biggest changes in Jalandhar North's political landscape involves Dinesh Dhall. After contesting the 2022 election on an AAP ticket, Dhall was removed as the party's constituency in-charge in July 2026. AAP appointed Jalandhar Mayor Vaneet Dhir in his place.
Dhall subsequently joined the BJP on September 2, 2026, in the presence of Punjab BJP leaders, including state president Kewal Singh Dhillon and former MLA K.D. Bhandari.
This development has brought two possible BJP contenders, Bhandari and Dhall, into the constituency's political discussions. However, the BJP has not officially announced its Jalandhar North candidate for 2027.
For Congress, sitting MLA Avtar Singh Junior remains the party's elected representative from the constituency. He won the 2017 and 2022 Assembly elections, making Congress the winner in the last two elections held on the present constituency boundaries.
AAP, meanwhile, has appointed Mayor Vaneet Dhir as its Jalandhar North halqa in-charge. His appointment indicates the party's organisational focus on the constituency, but it does not amount to an official ticket announcement.
AAP announced its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections on October 31. Jalandhar North was not included in that list. Therefore, the party's final choice for the seat remains undecided.
On August 25, 2026, BSP chief Mayawati announced that her party would contest the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections independently, without an alliance.
This is an important departure from the 2022 arrangement, when BSP contested as an ally of SAD. If BSP maintains this position, it will enter the next election as a separate political force in Jalandhar North.
The possibility of a SAD-BJP alliance remains a subject of political discussion, but no formal agreement has been announced.
BJP national general secretary B.L. Santhosh said on August 24 that the party would contest all 117 Assembly seats in Punjab independently. BJP leader Satish Poonia reiterated the same position on August 31.
On the other hand, SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal said on October 29 that his party was open to an alliance with parties accepting its ideology and policies. However, he did not confirm any agreement with BJP.
For Jalandhar North, the 2022 results show that the BJP-BSP combined tally was closer to Congress's winning figure than either party's individual tally. But electoral outcomes cannot be predicted through simple addition of votes.
The candidate selection, party organisation, voter preferences and any formal alliance arrangement will shape the contest. With Congress, BJP and AAP yet to finalise their candidates for the constituency, the political equation for Jalandhar North in 2027 remains open.