BJP's Kuljit Singh Sandhu Wins Senior Deputy Mayor Post Days After AAP's Victory In Mayoral Election

Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Kuljeet Singh Sandhu emerged victorious in the repolls for the position of senior deputy mayor at the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation on Monday. Sandhu secured 19 votes, defeating his closest rival, Gurpreet Gabi of Congress, who gathered 16 votes while one vote was declared invalid. The announcement of the results was made by the newly declared mayor.  

In the 35-member municipal house, the BJP currently holds 17 seats, a significant rise from their previous strength of 14. This increase occurred after three Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillors switched allegiance to the BJP earlier in February. Currently, AAP holds 10 seats, Congress has seven, and Shiromani Akali Dal has one.  

The Apex Court's decision on February 20 overturned the results of the January 30 mayoral poll that was declared rigged; the election had initially declared a BJP candidate as the winner. The SC ruled the AAP-Congress alliance candidate Kuldeep Kumar as the city's mayor. The ongoing election process for the deputy mayor's position is being conducted by AAP councillor Kumar, who recently assumed the role of Chandigarh mayor.  

Accusing manipulation of ballots, AAP and Congress councillors abstained from participating in the elections for the senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor roles, resulting in the victory of Sandhu and Rajinder Sharma, then. This time too, the BJP has nominated Sharma for the deputy mayor position, and he is facing competition from Congress's Nirmala Devi.