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Chandigarh mayor polls postponed; Congress says ‘BJP not ready to face defeat'
Several councilors received a text message attributing the postponement to the ill health of Anil Masih, who was nominated as the presiding authority.
Chandigarh: The Chandigarh mayoral elections, scheduled for today, have been postponed till further notice. Several councilors received a text message attributing the postponement to the ill health of Anil Masih, who was nominated as the presiding authority for the elections. Reacting to the development, the Congress said the Bharatiya Janata Party “wasn't ready to face defeat”.
"It is informed that a telephonic message has been received regarding ill health of Sh Anil Masih who has been nominated as Presiding authority for the meeting scheduled on 18.1.24 for the post of mayor u/60 (a) read with Regulation 6(1) of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation(Procedure and Conduct of Business) Regulation 1996. In view of above, it is requested not to reach MC office till further orders are received please," several councillors received this message at 10.30 am.
The announcement triggered protests by the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party, who had formed an alliance for the mayoral elections.
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At 14, the BJP has the most number of councillors in the 35-member MC House, while AAP comes a close second in strength with 13. The Congress has seven councillors, whereas one councillor is from SAD.
With another vote of local MP and ex-officio member Kirron Kher, BJP has an edge, but not enough to beat Congress and AAP’s conjoined numbers.
The Aam Aadmi Party said no BJP councillors reached the house, which meant they already knew the elections won't take place today.
The Congress said it will move court against the postponement of elections.
"The BJP was not ready to face defeat and they intentionally postponed the elections. If BJP would have believed in democracy, they would have requested DC to change the presiding officer. This is end of democracy. We will now move to court," former MP and senior Congress leader Pawan Bansal said.
