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Patiala mayor suspended; Capt’s grip on Royal City politics gets a jolt
Former CM Capt Amarinder himself led a group of councillors with him to the MC House; Amarinder also voted, but still only 25 of the councillors were with him
Patiala In high drama inside the municipal corporation House on Thursday, former chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh’s grip on Patiala politics received a blow, with his protégé mayor Sanjiv Bittu losing the vote of the majority of the members. He has also been suspended.
The loss of majority is a major blow for Patiala Royals, as Bittu was the only elected leader in the constituency, who had been supporting Amarinder, since the formation of the Capt’s new party, the Punjab Lok Congress.
The House has 60 councillors, with 59 from the Congress. Most of them were given tickets on the recommendation of Patiala MP and Capt’s wife, Preneet Kaur. Of the total House strength of 63 (after including the three MLAs), 35 councillors voted against Bittu, while 25 voted in his mayor. Two members of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) abstained from voting. This means that since losing his position as the CM, 35 councillors have shifted loyalty from Amarinder to the Congress party.
“With the mayor losing the majority, he has been suspended. Senior deputy mayor Yoginderpal Singh Yogi will take charge of the post till the new mayor is elected,” said Punjab local bodies minister Brahm Mohindra, who also voted against the mayor. He added that the new mayor will be elected soon and it will be a councillor, who has worked for the party.
No provision of suspension,
will challenge decision: Amarinder
Former CM Amarinder, however, claimed there was no provision of suspension in the law governing MCs. “Councillors moved a no-confidence motion, which was defeated as they didn’t get 42 votes (two-third) of the House strength. As the no-confidence motion was not passed, Sanjiv is still the mayor. If they indulge in any undemocratic way to remove Bittu as mayor, Punjab Lok Congress will knock the door of the high court to save democracy,” said Amarinder, who also voted.
Earlier in the day, Amarinder led councillors of his group to the MC House from his residence Moti Bagh Palace in a bus. His convoy was stopped well short of the House, but he walked there to participate in proceedings. His supporters accused the police of picking up two of their members; but they were later releasing to attend the meeting.
To avoid any poaching, Preneet had gathered 20-odd councillors at the New Moti Bagh Palace, the Royal Palace of her family, drawing the ire of the Congress high command, with All-India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary Harish Chaudhary sending her a show-cause notice for indulging in anti-party activities, and siding with Amarinder instead of the party.
“The Congress is the party of workers, not of any individual. This has been proven today,” said Harvinder Singh Nippy, a councillor from Amarinder’s constituency, who has left his camp and now sided with the Congress.
BOX PLEASE
Police refuse entry to Capt’s daughter
Tempers ran high after police refused entry to senior Congress leaders, including Jai Inder Kaur, daughter of Amarinder. She was seen sitting on stairs outside the main entry to the MC office. Captain’s advisers were also not allowed to accompany him inside the MC complex, with a large police force on hand to maintain law and order. For some time, the situation turned tense when supporters of both groups gathered outside the complex and started sloganeering against each other. No untoward incident was, however, reported.
