Party candidate Harpreet Kaur Babla is elected Mayor against odds, defeating AAP-Cong combine candidate Prem Lata of AAP 19-17 by getting the benefit of three cross votes in a secret ballot
Congress candidates representing the combine, however, win both posts of Senior Deputy Mayor (Jasbir Singh ‘Bunty’) and Deputy Mayor (Taruna Mehta)
Blame game begins among combine partners
Urgent need for reforms in municipal laws to halt apparent horse-trading and other electoral malpractices
So, what went wrong for the Aam Aadmi Party in the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation mayoral elections on Thursday! Despite commanding a combined clear majority of four, why did the joint AAP-Congress Mayor candidate Prem Lata from the AAP lose by two votes (19-17) to the BJP candidate Harpreet Kaur Babla, while their joint candidates for the Senior Deputy Major and Deputy Mayor’s posts, Jasbir Singh ‘Bunty’ and Taruna Mehta won the elections by the same margin given the same scenario!
Apart from the 35 councillors, the local Member of Parliament too has a vote in the House in his capacity as ex-officio member of the municipal corporation, making the total number of votes 36.
Going by their strength in the House, the AAP-Cong combine had 20 votes (AAP 13, Cong 6 and one vote of Cong MP from Chandigarh Manish Tewari) and the BJP 16 after one of the seniormost Congress councillors Gurbax Rawat shifted allegiance from the Congress to the BJP just a couple of days ahead of the elections.
With this equation, one thing is certain, three were three cross votes from the combine in the polling for Mayor’s post and one cross-vote each in the polling for the other two posts.
There can broadly be two probable scenarios. Either the Congress as a party backstabbed the AAP in connivance with the BJP, as alleged by the AAP; or there was resentment within AAP councillors, or Congress councillors, or both, over Prem Lata being made the combine’s mayoral candidate.
Advertisement
Known for her brashness, Prem Lata may have ruffled a few feathers. When former Chandigarh Congress President Pardeep Chhabra had switched over to the AAP, Prem Lala along with several others, had followed suit prior to the general elections to the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation in December 2021. She had won the elections as councillor from Ward No. 23 (sectors 34, 35 & 43) as AAP candidate.
The newly elected Mayor, Harpreet Kaur Babla has had a long Congress background. She, as Congress councillor, along with her husband Devinder Singh Babla, a former vice president of Chandigarh Congress, had joined the BJP ahead of the annual mayoral elections in January 2022. Their old links in the Congress may also have played a role in the elections. Devinder Singh Babla is currently vice-president in Chandigarh unit of BJP.
Given the secret ballot, it may never be publicly known what happened, but once again political manipulation has won the day against the spirit of democracy.
The signs were ominous when Gurbax Rawat was made to switch sides ahead of the mayoral polls. It proved that BJP was on the prowl. It would have been difficult for the party to publicly win over three more councillors required for a victory in the mayoral elections. Speculations over probable crossvoting were rife in public domain.
The episode raises serious questions like, did the Supreme Court appointed observer for the elections make an iota of difference to the cause of holding free and fair elections, both in letter and in spirit!
It once again brings to focus the urgent need for reforms in the municipal laws to put a halt to the dance of money, power and influence, and the mockery of democracy.
