High drama as AAP alleges vote tampering in Chandigarh mayoral polls, cites video

BJP candidate got 16 votes, while Kuldeep Kumar of the AAP-Congress alliance bagged 12 votes. Eight of the total 36 votes were declared invalid.

High drama unfolded on Tuesday at the Assembly Hall of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (MC) after the presiding officer declared eight votes of Congress and AAP councillors invalid, paving the way for the BJP candidate Manoj Sonkar's victory in the mayoral elections.

Screengrab of video shared by AAP alleging that the presiding officer made tick marks on some ballots.

Sonkar secured 16 votes compared to AAP's Kuldeep Kumar's 12, with eight votes declared invalid.

The announcement of these results prompted immediate protests from AAP and Congress councillors, who accused the BJP of foul play.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress, who were contesting the polls as part of the INDIA bloc, have accused the presiding officer, Anil Masih, of manipulating ballots during the counting process. AAP, pointing to footage purportedly showing Masih making some marks on some ballots, raised concerns about the integrity of the election process.

The ballots may be declared invalid for several reasons, including identifying marks on the ballot paper that could reveal voters' identity and thus compromise the secrecy of the ballot.

AAP leader and Rajya Sabha member Raghav Chadha has demanded action against the presiding officer and a criminal case filed against him.

“This was not just an unconstitutional and illegal thing but also a treason. Whatever happened today during the mayoral elections in Chandigarh can only be called treason,” Chadha said at a hurriedly called press conference.

The AAP has moved the high court, with Punjab Advocate General Gurminder Singh mentioning Kumar's plea for urgent hearing. Singh submitted that eight votes were declared invalid without assigning any reason and demanded that the record of the election be sealed.

The high court will take up the matter on Wednesday.

Neither the municipal authorities nor Masih has so far issued any clarification regarding these allegations.

Former Congress MP Pawan Kumar Bansal labelled the incident as a brazen attempt to subvert democracy and accused Masih of orchestrating a premeditated scheme to undermine the electoral process.

“Agent of the Congress-AAP candidate was not allowed to see the ballot papers, the presiding officer announced rejection of eight votes, declared BJP candidate winner and went away. BJP members rushed to the table and tore off the ballot papers,” he alleged.

AAP convener and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal lambasted the BJP, accusing them of "cheating" in the electoral process.

"If these people can stoop to this level in a mayoral poll, they can go to any extent in the national elections," Kejriwal said in a post on X. "This is very worrying," he said.

The polls were originally scheduled for January 18 but were deferred to February 6 by the Chandigarh administration after the presiding officer fell ill. The administration had at that time also said the polls were postponed after assessing the law-and-order situation.

The administration's order deferring the polls had triggered protests by Congress and AAP councillors.

Kuldeep Kumar had challenged the Chandigarh deputy commissioner's order to defer the elections in the high court.

In its January 24 order, the high court directed the Chandigarh administration to hold the mayoral polls at 10 am on January 30. It also quashed the administration's January 18 order postponing the elections while holding it "unreasonable, unjustified and arbitrary".

The polls were originally scheduled for January 18 but were deferred to February 6 by the Chandigarh administration after the presiding officer apparently fell ill. The administration had at that time also said the polls were postponed after assessing the law-and-order situation. Kumar challenged the Chandigarh deputy commissioner's order to defer the elections in the high court.

The mayoral polls assume significance with opposition INDIA bloc members, the Congress and the AAP, joining hands to contest the elections against the BJP, which has held the mayor’s post for the past eight years.

As part of the alliance, the AAP was contesting for the mayor's post while the Congress has fielded candidates for senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor.

The newly elected mayor will hold the elections for the posts of senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor.

(With inputs from Mandeep Kaur Narula and Surender Sharma in Chandigarh)