Punjab: Cong wins 8 seats, SAD-BJP 4 & AAP leads on 1
Chandigarh, May 23: Congress has won eight parliamentary seats in Punjab, bucking the pro-Modi trend seen across northern and central India in this general election.
Out of the total 13 seats in the state, Congress romped home to impressive victory on eight seats, surprising both the SAD-BJP combine and the Aam Aadmi Party and improving its tally from three in 2014. It had won Gurdaspur in a bypoll in 2017.
The Akali Dal-BJP alliance won on four seats and the AAP was leading on one.
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, Bollywood actor Sunny Deol, Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal, former Union ministers Manish Tewari and Preneet Kaur, and Ravneet Singh Bittu were among the prominent leaders who won in Punjab.
Major upsets in the poll outcome were Union minister and BJP nominee Hardeep Singh Puri, Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar and SAD candidate Prem Singh Chandumajra.
Akali Dal managed to win only two seats against four it pocketed in last general election.
BJP won Hoshiarpur and Gurdaspur but failed again to break the "jinx" of not winning Amritsar.
AAP appeared routed from Punjab, leading on only one seat out of the 13 it contested. It had surprised many in 2014 Lok Sabha election when it had won four seats in the state.
In 2014 polls, while the SAD-BJP combine had won six seats, AAP and Congress had bagged four and three seats, respectively.
Since the counting of votes began 8 am, Congress continuously maintained lead in the eight constituencies it finally won Amritsar, Faridkot, Anandpur Sahib, Jalandhar, Khadoor Sahib, Ludhiana, Fatehgarh Sahib and Patiala.
Punjab Chief Minister and Congress leader Amarinder Singh's wife and two-time MP Preneet Kaur defeated SAD candidate Surjit Singh Rakhra by 1.62 lakh votes in Patiala.
The party's Manish Tewari won from Anandpur Sahib by trouncing veteran Akali leader Prem Singh Chandumajra by more than 46,000 votes.
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and his wife and Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal were the only SAD candidates who won their respective Ferozepur and Bathinda seats, both considered the party's stronghold.
Former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Badal fought against turncoat and Congress candidate Sher Singh Ghubaya and defeated him with a margin of over 1.98 lakh votes.
Harsimrat Kaur was re-elected from Bathinda for the third time, defeating Congress candidate Amrinder Singh Raja Warring with a margin of 21,772 votes.
A major highlight of the poll outcome was BJP candidate Sunny Deol's win. He wrested Gurdaspur seat from Congress heavyweight Sunil Jakhar by over 82,000 votes.
Ravneet Singh Bittu, a two-time MP and grandson of former chief minister Beant Singh, retained his Ludhiana seat by defeating Lok Insaaf Party nominee Simarjeet Singh Bains by over 76,000 votes.
Winning the majority of constituencies in Punjab, despite a "Modi wave", would strengthen the stature of CM Amarinder Singh who almost single handedly rode his party to victory.
The impressive performance by the Congress would also mean voters did not fall for the rival parties' pitch that Amarinder Singh had reneged on his party's poll promises.
The SAD, which was looking to resurrect itself following a backlash over the issue of desecration of religious texts, could manage to win only two seats, out of the 10 it contested.
Despite fielding old warhorses from several constituencies, including Jagir Kaur (Khadoor Sahib), Gulzar Singh Ranike (Faridkot), Charanjit Singh Atwal (Jalandhar), Prem Singh Chandumajra (Anandpur Sahib) and Parminder Singh Dhindsa (Sangrur), SAD contestants were badly trailing.
The AAP, in spite of party chief Arvind Kejriwal's extensive campaigning in Punjab, was set to win only Sangrur constituency, from where party's state unit head Bhagwant Mann is contesting, against his rival Kewal Singh Dhillon of the Congress.
The poll prospects for AAP were not bright from the beginning because of internal bickering and desertions and Bhagwant Mann was the best bet for the party in these polls.
Punjab Democratic Alliance, a conglomeration of several outfits led by Sukhpal Khaira's Punjabi Ekta Party, also failed to offer third front in Punjab's politics as none of its candidate could make a mark except Lok Insaaf Party's (part of PDA) Simarjit Singh Bains finished second after losing to Bittu from Ludhiana. Khaira finished a poor fourth in Bathinda.
However, the poll outcome saw some support to the candidates of the Bahujan Samaj Party (part of the PDA) on Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Anandpur Sahib seats as its contestants were at the third position in these constituencies.
A total of 10 sitting parliament members and nine assembly legislators of different political outfits tried their luck during this election.
The vote share of Congress grew to 40.13 per cent while Akali Dal's was 27.45.
AAP's vote share nosedived to 7.38 per cent while BJP and BSP's was 9.63 and 3.49 per cent, respectively, as per the EC data.
In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Congress party's vote share was 33.10 and SAD's was 26.30 per cent. AAP and BJP's vote share percentage was 24.40 and 8.70.
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India says no payment issues with Iran, crude supplies fully secured
New Delhi (PTI): India said on Saturday that there are no payment issues with Iran for crude imports and that refiners continue to source oil from the country, as well as from a wide range of global suppliers.
In a post on X, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas dismissed reports that an oil tanker carrying Iranian crude had rerouted mid-voyage from its previously indicated destination of India, which would have marked the first such shipment in nearly seven years, to China, saying the claims overlooked standard industry practice where cargoes can change destination during transit based on trade optimisation and operational flexibility.
Terming as "factually incorrect" assertions that the cargo was diverted from its previously indicated destination of Vadinar in Gujarat to China due to payment hurdles, the ministry said, "there are no payment hurdles for Iranian crude imports".
"India imports crude oil from 40+ countries, with companies having full flexibility to source oil from different sources and geographies based on commercial considerations," it said.
"Amid Middle East supply disruptions, Indian refiners have secured their crude oil requirements, including from Iran, and there is no payment hurdle for Iranian crude imports, contrary to the rumours being circulated."
Ship-tracking firm Kpler on Friday stated that Aframax tanker Ping Shun, built in 2002 and sanctioned by the US in 2025, is now signalling Dongying in China as its destination instead of Vadinar in Gujarat, which it had indicated earlier this week.
Oil on Ping Shun would have been the first Iranian crude that India would have purchased since 2019. Indian refiners have been looking at opportunities to purchase a few cargoes of Iranian oil on water following the recent sanctions waiver by Washington.
The ministry clarified that changes in vessel destinations during transit are common in global oil trade, as bills of lading often indicate tentative discharge ports and cargoes may be rerouted mid-voyage for operational and commercial reasons.
"Claims on vessel diversion ignore how the oil trade works. Bills of Lading often carry indicative discharge ports, destinations and on-sea cargoes can change destinations mid-voyage based on trade optimisation and operational flexibility," the ministry said.
"It is reiterated that India's crude oil requirements remain fully secured for the coming months."
The ministry also said that an LPG vessel, Sea Bird, carrying about 44,000 tonnes of Iranian LPG, berthed at Mangalore on April 2 and is currently discharging cargo.
Historically, India was a major buyer of Iranian crude, importing significant volumes of Iranian light and heavy grades due to strong refinery compatibility and favourable commercial terms.
Following sanctions tightening in 2018, imports ceased in May 2019, with volumes replaced by Middle Eastern, US and other grades. At peak, Iranian crude accounted for 11.5 per cent of India's total imports.
India used to buy 5,18,000 barrels per day of Iranian oil in 2018, which slowed to 2,68,000 bpd between January and May 2019 when the US granted waivers to a few buyers. There have been no imports since.
The key grades that Indian refiners used to purchase are Iran light and Iran heavy crudes.
The US last month waived sanctions on the purchase of Iranian oil at sea for 30 days in its latest attempt to ease oil prices that have been driven up by the US-Israeli war on Iran.
That window expires April 19. An estimated 95 million barrels of Iranian oil are on vessels at sea, of which around 51 million barrels could be sold to India, and the remaining are better suited for buyers in China and Southeast Asia.
Ping Shun is estimated to be carrying about 6,00,000 barrels of oil that was loaded from Kharg Island around March 4. Its declared ETA to Vadinar was April 4, according to Kpler.
