E-Paper
Civic polls: Some corporators elected to PMC House with ‘first division’
In the recent civic polls in Prayagraj, 10 candidates, including many women, secured over 60% of votes despite a low voter turnout. BJP's Sunita Singh won the most impressive victory, securing 81.64% of the total valid votes, while independent candidate Anand Ghildiyal secured 80.31%. Some veteran corporators, including Kamesh Singh, lost their seats.
The civic polls witnessed many neck and neck fights among candidates aspiring to become corporators of Prayagraj Municipal Corporation (PMC) with mere 100 seats on offer. However, the fight also witnessed many candidates, especially women, bagging bulk of the votes from their wards.
The win of 10 such candidates is especially extraordinary as despite a low voting percentage witnessed this year in municipal limits (31.45%), these corporators still managed to pass the test with ‘first division’ securing 60% or above votes cast in their respective municipal wards.
Foremost among them is Sunita Singh, a BJP candidate from ward number 79, Preetam Nagar, who registered the most impressive victory. She bagged a total 81.64% of the total valid votes. Her husband Amarjeet Singh was the sitting corporator of the ward but as the ward was reserved for women, BJP gave ticket to Singh’s wife. Although this ward witnessed a very low voting percentage (around 22%) Sunita got 2,521 votes out of the total 3,086 valid votes, data of the district election office show.
Likewise, independent candidate Anand Ghildiyal alias Aanu got 80.31% votes. He got 3,250 votes from ward number 61 (Colonelganj). He has been the winner from this ward in 2006, 2012, 2017 and now again in 2023. “All the political parties wanted me to contest on their ticket, but I prefer to work on my own,” he said.
Likewise, BJP candidate from Sulem Sarai, Reena too secured a thumping victory. She got 3,479 or 76.9% votes. Likewise, BJP candidate Sahil Arora, who won for the second time in a row from Meerapur got 3,649 (76.3%) votes while Amit Singh, also of BJP, got 1,809 (72.53%) votes from Civil Lines (One).
SP candidate from Chakia Jahanara got 2,733 (65.7%) votes, BJP candidate Sonika Agarwal, wife of sitting corporator of the ward Anand Agarwal, got 3319 (68.39%). BJP’s Saras alias Sunita Darbari got 3,862 (67.26%) votes from Jhulelal Nagar while BJP candidate Kamini Kushwaha got 2067 (65.1%) votes from Mundera ward.
The list also includes some independent candidates like Shiv Sevak Singh who got 2,660 (60.05%) votes from Bharadwajapuram. Singh had won from this ward in 1989, 2000, 2006, 2012 and now again in 2023. He did not contest in 2017 as the seat was reserved for women candidate. “Political parties invite me to join but this is not a platform for politics nor minting money,” he said.
Interestingly, the election results were not so easy for a few like veteran corporator Kamesh Singh who lost from ward number 48 (Alopibagh) as an independent candidate. He had won from this ward in 2000, 2006 and 2017 and was considered a vocal corporator in the house of PMC. Kamlesh was defeated by former corporator Umesh Mishra of the BJP.
Likewise, Manohar Das ward was viewed as a stronghold of former corporator Athar Raza ‘Ladle’. However, after the ward was reserved for women, Ladle fielded his daughter-in-law, but she lost to Asma of BSP. Equally surprising was the result of Daira Shah Ajmal wherein wife of former corporator Anees Ahmed lost the election. Congress’s Mumtaz Ansari gave a major blow to Anees Ahmed’s family as it is the first time after 1989 that he or someone from his family has failed to get elected from the seat.
