In a major blow to the Congress-Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alliance, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured victory in the Chandigarh Mayoral Election with 19 votes. The AAP-Congress alliance managed only 17 votes after three of its councillors cross-voted.
BJP candidate Harpreet Kaur Babla defeated AAP’s Prem Lata to claim the mayoral post. The Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has 36 votes in total, comprising 35 councillors and one Member of Parliament (MP). A majority of 19 votes was required to win.
Voting began around 11 AM, and the unexpected cross-voting by three alliance councillors paved the way for BJP’s triumph.
#WATCH | BJP candidate Harpreet Kaur Babla wins the Chandigarh Mayor elections. pic.twitter.com/B4CcRqL8Yk
— ANI (@ANI) January 30, 2025
Moments before the commencement of the election, an FIR was also registered against former mayor and AAP councillor Kuldeep Kumar and his brother-in-law Rahul Chanalia on charges of corruption. This case is related to the alleged bribe in the recruitment of sanitation workers on a contract basis in the Municipal Corporation.
The complainant Ravi Birla lodged a complaint on the SSP window on Tuesday, in which he alleged that Kuldeep Kumar’s brother-in-law Rahul took a bribe of Rs 1 lakh in the name of a job as a sanitation worker, but did not give the job. According to Ravi, he had paid Rs 75,000 through online mediums and Rs 30,000 in cash. He has also presented 15 recordings and screenshots of online transactions in support of his complaint.
On October 29, 2024, the Municipal Corporation passed the resolution to conduct voting by a “show of hands” instead of the previous practice of secret ballot, with AAP’s Kuldeep Kumar presiding over as mayor.
The last year’s mayoral polls was marred by controvery after the then presiding officer defaced some ballots to the BJP’s benefit. On February 20, 2024, a division bench of the Supreme Court led by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud declared Kuldeep Kumar, the Aam Aadmi Party candidate as the winner of the mayoral elections.
The Supreme Court had found that the then Returning Officer, Anil Masih had on January 30 deliberately defaced eight ballots that were cast in favour of Kuldeep Kumar so as to make them invalid.
There were already reports of bickering within the Aam Aadmi Party and therefore, the party released a photo of all councillors being kept in a hotel in Punjab’s Ropar town to prevent ‘poaching’. The photo comprised three councillors who are reportedly ‘upset’ with the party.
AAP mayoral candidate candidate Prem Lata, 46, is the wife of a retired Indian Air Force Officer. She is currently teaching English in a government school to Class XI and XII students. The BJP’s Harpreet Babla, the second time councillor, is the daughter of a retired Army Colonel and is married to former councillor Devinder Singh Babla, who was previously with the Congress.
As per the alliance pact, the Congress has fielded Jasbir Singh Bunty and Taruna Mehta for the posts of Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor, respectively while AAP fielded the mayoral candidate.
After the Congress’ rebel councillor Gurbax Rawat joined the BJP on January 27, the AAP and the Congress moved their councillors out of the city.
This mayoral election was the fourth year of the five-year rotational system. Before this outgoing mayoral term, the BJP had retained the seat for nine times in a row. To oversee the mayoral election, the Supreme Court earlier this week appointed Punjab and Haryana High Court’s former judge Justice Jaishree Thakur as an independent observer. (With agency inputs)
