Lok Sabha elections: Meet seven candidates who won as independents
In the upcoming 18th Lok Sabha, as many as 526 candidates will be from the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which won 292 seats in the recently-held general elections, and the Congress-led INDIA bloc, which bagged 234 seats.
The remaining 17 to-be Members of Parliament (MPs) do not belong to either bloc; seven of them contested and won as independents.
Who are these seven independents?
They are Amritpal Singh, Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa, Patel Umeshbhai Babubhai, Mohamad Haneefa, Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav, Vishal Patil, and Sheikh Abdul Rashid alias Rashid Engineer. Two are currently in jail: Amritpal Singh and Rashid Engineer.
Where did they contest from?
| Independent | Constituency (State/Union territory) | Runner-up | Victory margin (in votes) |
| Amritpal Singh | Khadoor Sahib (Punjab) | Kulbir Singh Zira (Congress) | 197,120 |
| Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa | Faridkot (Punjab) | Sarabjeet Singh Anmol (AAP) | 70,053 |
| Patel Umeshbhai Babubhai | Daman and Diu (Daman and Diu-UT) | Lalubhai Babubhai Patel (BJP) | 6225 |
| Mohmad Haneefa | Ladakh (Ladakh-UT) | Tsering Namgyal (Congress) | 27,862 |
| Rajesh Ranjan | Purnia (Bihar) | Santosh Kumar (JDU) | 23,847 |
| Vishal Patil | Sangli (Maharashtra) | Sanjay Patil (BJP) | 100,053 |
| Abdul Rashid Sheikh | Baramulla (Jammu and Kashmir-UT) | Omar Abdullah (JKNC) | 204,142 |
Profile
Amritpal Singh: Amritpal, who heads pro-Khalistan outfit Waris Punjab De, is currently lodged in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail under the National Security Act (NSA). He returned to India in September 2022 from Dubai, where he moved in 2012 to join his family’s transport business.
Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa: He is the son of Beant Singh, one of the two bodyguards who assassinated then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in October 1984. Singh’s grandfather, Baba Sucha Singh, also served as a Lok Sabha member, representing Bathinda.
Patel Umeshbhai Babubhai: Babubhai is a social worker, according to ADR. His victory is significant as he defeated sitting BJP MP Lalubhau Babubhai Patel, who was seeking a fourth successive term from the Daman and Diu seat.
Mohmad Haneefa: A former district president of the National Conference, Haneefa is the fourth independent to win the Ladakh seat, which came into existence in 1967. Independents won here in the 1984, 2004, and 2009 national election as well.
Rajesh Ranjan: Also known as Pappu Yadav, Ranjan merged his Jan Aadhikar Party (JAP) with the Congress in March. Ranjan, who has served multiple terms as a Lok Sabha member, contested independently after the Congress gave Purnia to the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) under their seat-sharing agreement.
Vishal Patil: The grandson of former Maharashtra chief minister Vasantrao Patil rebelled against the Congress after the grand old party’s ally, Shiv Sena (UBT), fielded its own candidate.
Sheikh Abdul Rashid: Engineer Rashid is currently lodged in Delhi’s Tihar Jail in a terror-funding case. The former two-time legislator was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2019 on charges of terror-funding activities, becoming the first mainstream leader to be held under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.