State
Union Territories

Punjab Legislative Assembly

The Punjab Legislative Assembly was formed after independence. The first assembly election took place in the year 1952. The strength of the Punjab Legislative Assembly was revised several times according to the needs of the house. At times, the number of members was curtailed and reduced from 154 members to 87 members. The strength of the assembly was again revised after the general elections of 1967 and the assembly was given the permission to accommodate 104 members. Presently the strength of the Punjab Legislative Assembly is 117 members. The assembly carries out its functions from 'Vidhan Bhavan'. Vidhan Bhavan was set up on 6 March 1961 as the permanent assembly house. The assembly building is located within the capital of Chandigarh and it covers an area of about 80 hectares.

The last Punjab Assembly Election was held in 2007. SAD (Shiromani Akali Dal) won the maximum number of votes in the assembly election and secured 48 seats in the house. The INC (Indian National Congress) was left short behind with 44 seats in the assembly. The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) won 19 seats in the assembly. SAD contested the election with 93 candidates whereas the INC contested with 116 members. The BJP nominated 23 candidates for the last assembly election in Punjab.

Out of 56 female candidates contesting the elections, 7 were elected. The poll was conducted on 13.2.2007 and the result was declared on 27.2.2007. INC excelled in the 2002 Punjab Legislative Assembly Election and managed to win 62 seats while SAD ended up with 42. It is interesting to note that SAD won the 1997 assembly election with 75 seats in the house and INC won the 1992 election and secured 87 seats. Thus, INC and SAD are surely the two most prominent political parties in Punjab and they gain control over the state by rotation. After analyzing the voting pattern in Punjab, one can expect INC to win the next assembly election replacing the existing SAD government though a chance of the break of this tradition cannot really be wiped out.