The Bharatiya Janata Party’s aggressive campaign in the Punjab civic body elections yielded limited returns, with the saffron party managing victories in just 172 of the 1,316 seats it contested and securing a clear majority only in the Abohar municipal corporation.BJP workers celebrate the party’s win in Abohar municipal corporation on Friday. (HT Photo)The party’s inability to translate its urban push ahead of the 2027 assembly polls was visible across several key civic bodies, including areas considered its political strongholds, leaving it trailing behind the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).Even in Pathankot, the home turf of former Punjab BJP chief and sitting MLA Ashwani Sharma, the party fell short of a majority despite emerging as the single largest party with 22 of the 50 wards.Abohar, considered the citadel of former Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar’s family, emerged as the lone bright spot for the BJP. The party won 28 of the 50 wards there, crossing the majority mark of 26. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) secured 20 seats, while the Congress managed just one. Suspended Congress MLA and Jakhar’s nephew, Sandeep Jakhar, single-handedly led the BJP’s campaign in the town.Mukerian, represented by BJP only other MLA, Jangi Lal Mahajan, delivered a similar verdict, with the party falling short of the majority mark by one seat. In Fazilka municipal council too, the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 11 of the 25 seats, but could not secure a majority.The party’s performance remained underwhelming in several other urban centres. In Barnala, the hometown of newly appointed Punjab BJP chief Kewal Dhillon, the party managed to win only seven of the 50 wards. Bathinda, where the BJP had secured its highest vote share in Punjab during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, proved to be a major disappointment, with the party winning just one of the 50 seats in the municipal corporation.In Moga municipal corporation, the BJP could secure only three seats. Mohali emerged as another setback, where the party too managed only three of the 50 wards.With the BJP failing to gain ground in majority of the civic bodies in both urban and semi-urban areas, it surely has its work cut out ahead of the 2027 assembly elections.