E-Paper
INDIA bloc cliches three of five Chandigarh MC finance panel seats
Six councillors (three each from INDIA bloc and BJP) had earlier filed their nominations for the five posts of the Chandigarh MC’s finance and contract committee, but BJP councillor Jasmanpreet Singh withdrew his nomination
The INDIA bloc, comprising the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress, sealed a majority in municipal corporation’s five-member finance and contract committee (F&CC), winning three seats after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) councillor Jasmanpreet Singh withdrew his nomination.
Six councillors (three each from INDIA bloc and BJP) had earlier filed their nominations for the five posts, setting the stage for a showdown that never materialised.
The F&CC elections scheduled for Monday were delayed by two hours after BJP’s objections. “The polls cannot be held until minutes of the previous MC meeting conducted for the polls of senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor are passed,” BJP councillors said, while citing the MC Act.
Legal opinion was sought from MC’s law officer, who gave the go-ahead for the polls.
In a last-minute development, however, BJP councillor Jasmanpreet withdrew his nomination and the five members were elected unopposed. The elected finance committee members now include — Jaswinder Kaur and Ramchandra Yadav from the AAP, Taruna Mehta from the Congress, and Maheshinder Singh Sidhu and Lakhbir Singh Billu from the BJP.
The F&CC is the civic body’s powerful committee second only to the general House, holding the power to approve projects and developmental works worth ₹50 lakh. Projects costing more than ₹50 lakh are discussed and approved by the House.
Notably, the BJP had lost the majority in the 35-member House on Saturday after two AAP turncoats who had jumped ship to the saffron party ahead of the keenly-contested mayoral polls rejoined the party. With this, the INDIA bloc’s strength in MC House climbed to 19, with AAP having 12 councillors and Congress seven. BJP councillors’ strength came down to 15 and even the vote of ex-officio member MP Kiron Kher and support of lone SAD councillor could not help them muster the strength needed to security the sixth spot on the panel.
