As the six-day session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha concluded today, signs of the political battle for the 2027 Assembly elections were as evident outside the House as they were inside.With the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) commanding 94 MLAs in the 117-member Assembly, the Congress and the BJP used the Assembly complex to assert their political presence through protests, demonstrations and sharp exchanges with the government.Outnumbered inside the House, the two Opposition parties sought to make their presence felt outside it, turning the Assembly complex into a hub of political mobilisation throughout the session.The BJP, which has only two MLAs in the Assembly, relied on the presence of former state party president Jattvibeil Jakhar and former Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu to amplify its campaign. The party sought to keep attention focused on issues such as law and order and the alleged drug menace, despite its limited strength in the House.The Congress, meanwhile, mounted a more visible protest campaign. Led by Leader of the Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa and newly appointed state Congress president Pargat Singh, party legislators staged demonstrations and burnt effigies of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and the AAP’s election symbol, the broom.The Congress also made headlines today after its MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira was suspended from the House. Party legislators gathered and attempted to enter the Assembly with him but were stopped by Vidhan Sabha staff. The episode brought the confrontation between the ruling party and the principal Opposition into sharp focus on the final day of the session.The protests outside the House stood in contrast to the AAP’s dominance within it, where its 94 MLAs ensured a comfortable majority for the government during proceedings. On Friday, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann delivered a detailed speech explaining why his party opposed the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and alleged that his opposition to the exercise had led to harassment at the Delhi airport. Today, Mann said his government would seek a fresh mandate on the basis of its work and future agenda rather than criticism of political opponents.“I have made my best efforts. We will now go to the people with the work we have done and our agenda for the future, and contest the elections with a positive outlook. Instead of criticism, we will present our achievements before the people. They will choose whichever roadmap they find better,” he said.For the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), however, the session offered little opportunity to demonstrate comparable political strength. The party has three MLAs, two of whom, Manpreet Singh Ayali and Dr Sukhwinder Kumar Sukhi, have rebelled against the party leadership, while the third, Ganieve Kaur Majithia, remained absent throughout the session.The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which has a lone MLA in the 117-member House, also failed to generate significant political activity during the six-day session, apart from its MLA Nachhatar Pal supporting the AAP on some key issues.