Gidderbaha is assembly seat No. 84 in Sri Muktsar Sahib district, Punjab. It was Parkash Singh Badal's stronghold for five consecutive wins (1969–1985), then held by his nephew Manpreet Badal four times (1995–2007). Raja Warring broke the Akali grip in 2012 and won three times in a row - by 13,652 votes in 2012, 16,212 votes in 2017, and a nail-biting 1,349 votes in 2022. He vacated the seat after winning the Ludhiana Lok Sabha seat in 2024. The November 2024 bypoll was won by AAP's Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon by 21,969 votes over Congress's Amrita Warring, with 81.9% voter turnout - the highest among four Punjab bypolls held that day.
Few assembly constituencies in Punjab carry the political weight that Gidderbaha does. Located in the Sri Muktsar Sahib district in the Malwa region, the Gidderbaha assembly seat - constituency number 84 in the Punjab Legislative Assembly - has been home to some of the state's most consequential political figures and most closely contested elections. From being the launchpad of a five-time Chief Minister to the site of three consecutive Congress victories by Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Gidderbaha's electoral history is a mirror of Punjab politics itself.
Gidderbaha Constituency - Location and Basic Profile
The Gidderbaha constituency falls under the Faridkot (SC) Lok Sabha constituency. As of the 2022 assembly elections, the seat had 1,67,761 registered electors - one of the larger assembly constituencies in the Malwa belt. The area is primarily agricultural, with a voter base that has historically responded to both development work on the ground and the gravitational pull of powerful political families.
The Badal Era - A Constituency That Made Chief Ministers
The political history of the Gidderbaha assembly seat cannot be told without the Badal family. Late Parkash Singh Badal - who served as Punjab's Chief Minister five times - first won the Gidderbaha constituency in the 1969 mid-term polls on a Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) ticket, having narrowly lost from the same seat in 1967 by just 57 votes. He went on to win Gidderbaha four more times - in 1972, 1977, 1980, and 1985 - making it the constituency from which he launched three of his five Chief Ministerial tenures.
In 1977, Badal won from Gidderbaha and formed the SAD-Janata Party coalition government, becoming Chief Minister for the second time. The constituency thus holds a unique place in Punjab's political memory as the seat from which the Akali Dal's most dominant leader repeatedly drew his mandate.
After Badal shifted base to Lambi in 1997, he handed Gidderbaha to his nephew Manpreet Singh Badal, who won the constituency on SAD tickets in 1995, 1997, 2002, and 2007 - four consecutive victories that kept Gidderbaha as an unbroken Akali stronghold for over three decades.
Complete Gidderbaha Election Results - 2007 to 2024
Gidderbaha Election Result 2007
Winner: Manpreet Singh Badal (SAD) Votes: 53,111 Runner-up: Raghubir Singh (INC) - 34,283 votes Winning margin: 18,828 votes
Manpreet Badal's fourth consecutive win from the Gidderbaha assembly seat cemented SAD's grip on the constituency. His margin of over 18,000 votes reflected the Badal family's deep entrenchment in the area.
Gidderbaha Election Result 2012
Winner: Amarinder Singh Raja Warring (INC) Votes: 50,305 Runner-up: Manpreet Singh Badal (PPP) - contested as People's Party of Punjab candidate after splitting from SAD Winning margin: 13,652 votes Total valid votes: 1,24,523 Total electors: 1,40,471
The 2012 Gidderbaha election result was a watershed moment. A first-time candidate, Raja Warring broke the Badal family's 42-year stranglehold on the seat. Manpreet Badal, who had split from the SAD and formed the People's Party of Punjab, contested but could not retain his former base. This was the first time since 1969 that a non-Akali had won the Gidderbaha constituency Punjab.
Gidderbaha Election Result 2017
Winner: Amarinder Singh Raja Warring (INC) Votes: 63,500 Runner-up: Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon (SAD) - 47,288 votes Winning margin: 16,212 votes Total valid votes: 1,39,227 Total electors: 1,56,448
Raja Warring's second consecutive win from the Gidderbaha assembly seat came with an increased majority. The 2017 Gidderbaha election results reflected the wider anti-SAD wave that swept Punjab that year, with the Congress forming government under Amarinder Singh. Raja Warring's margin of over 16,000 votes was his largest to that point, underscoring his growing personal connect in the constituency.
Gidderbaha Election Result 2022
Winner: Amarinder Singh Raja Warring (INC) Votes: 50,998 (35.7%) Runner-up: Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon (SAD) - 49,649 votes (34.8%) Third: Preetpal Sharma (AAP) - 38,881 votes (27.3%) Winning margin: 1,349 votes (0.95%) Total valid votes: 1,43,765 Total electors: 1,67,761
The 2022 Gidderbaha election result was the most dramatic of Raja Warring's three wins. A three-way contest with a credible AAP candidate entering the fray for the first time split the anti-incumbent vote. Raja Warring held on by a margin of just 1,349 votes - less than one per cent of total votes polled - making it one of the narrowest wins in Punjab that cycle. The result was also significant because it came in the same election in which AAP swept to power statewide, yet Raja Warring retained Gidderbaha constituency Punjab against the tide.
Shortly after the 2022 result, Warring was appointed President of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee. He was then elected as Member of Parliament from Ludhiana in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, vacating the Gidderbaha MLA seat and triggering a by-election.
Gidderbaha By-Election Result - November 2024
Winner: Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon (AAP) Votes: 71,644 (52.16%) Runner-up: Amrita Warring (INC) - 49,675 votes (36.17%) Third: Manpreet Singh Badal (BJP) - 12,227 votes (8.9%) Winning margin: 21,969 votes Voter turnout: 81.90% - the highest among four Punjab bypolls held simultaneously Total votes cast: 1,37,348
The November 2024 Gidderbaha bypoll marked a decisive shift. Congress fielded Amrita Warring - wife of Raja Warring and a first-time candidate - while Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon, who had lost to Raja Warring twice as an SAD nominee in 2017 and 2022, contested this time on an AAP ticket. Dimpy Dhillon won by 21,969 votes, becoming the first AAP MLA from the Gidderbaha assembly seat. Manpreet Singh Badal, contesting for the BJP, lost his security deposit - receiving only 12,227 votes - ending a chapter of Badal family dominance in the constituency.
Why Gidderbaha Has Always Mattered in Punjab Politics
The Gidderbaha constituency has consistently attracted high-profile candidates and generated some of Punjab's most closely watched results. Several factors make it a politically significant seat.
First, its history as the constituency of Parkash Singh Badal gives it symbolic weight that few assembly seats in the state can match. Winning or losing Gidderbaha has always carried a message beyond the local result.
Second, the seat sits in the Malwa heartland - a region that has historically been a decisive battleground between the SAD and the Congress. How Gidderbaha votes has often indicated broader shifts in the Malwa belt.
Third, since 2012, the constituency became directly associated with Raja Warring's political identity. His three consecutive wins as Gidderbaha MLA - ending an Akali monopoly that had lasted since 1969 - formed the foundation of his rise to become Punjab Congress President and subsequently MP from Ludhiana.
Read more about his full political journey and major campaigns on the official website.
As the 2027 Punjab assembly elections approach, Gidderbaha remains a seat to watch - now held by AAP but with Congress determined to reclaim its ground. For more on Raja Warring's vision and work, visit rajawarring.com.
Join the Movement
Gidderbaha is more than a constituency - it is proof that when a leader earns trust through consistent work on the ground, even the most entrenched political strongholds can change hands. Raja Warring built that trust across three elections and 12 years of service as Gidderbaha MLA. That same commitment now drives his work as Member of Parliament from Ludhiana and as Punjab Congress President.
If you believe Punjab deserves leaders who are accountable, grounded, and willing to fight - add your voice to the movement.