Ambala MC gets third nominated councillor, first from JJP

The 23rd councillor and third nominated member was inducted into the Ambala municipal corporation (MC) House on Tuesday, as 25-year-old Pooja Chaudhary was accorded the oath of office by mayor Shakti Rani Sharma

The 23rd councillor and third nominated member was inducted into the Ambala municipal corporation (MC) House on Tuesday, as 25-year-old Pooja Chaudhary was accorded the oath of office by mayor Shakti Rani Sharma.

Puja Chaudhary being inducted into the Ambala MC House on Monday. (HT Photo)

Chaudhary, an MSc in mathematics, is the wife of Jannayak Janata Party’s (JJP) state spokesperson Vivek Lallana. JJP is the junior alliance partner with the BJP in the Haryana government.

Chaudhary was inducted into the House during a low-key event at the conference hall of the MC office, which was attended by MC commissioner Dhirendra Khadgata, executive officer Jarnail Singh, JJP’s national secretary Surjeet Sonda and other party leaders. The oath was also streamed live for other House members.

With this, the party that was officially formed in 2018, made its entry into the Ambala MC. During the corporation elections in December 2020, the party contested in alliance with the BJP on a 16-4 formula, but couldn’t win even a single ward.

Now, there are three nominated members in the house including two from the BJP – advocate Sandeep Sachdeva and Suresh Sahota, who took oath in November last year. No party has a majority in the house, while the BJP and Haryana Jan Chetna Party have eight members each.The nomination will help JJP grow its stature in the urban belt, an official said.

In August last year, the department of urban local bodies had forwarded three names, including Vivek’s, to deputy commissioner (DC) Vikram, for “character verification”, as the celebrations began. However, Vivek’s name was struck-off at the last moment despite his proximity with Dushyant. Months later, his wife Pooja was recommended for the post in November.