Next Chandigarh mayoral poll likely to be held by show of hands
The next mayoral elections of the Municipal Corporation (MC) are likely to be conducted by a show of hands, instead of the traditional secret ballot system.
A senior official of the Administration said the proposal to amend rules under the Punjab Municipal Act, which governs the functioning of the Municipal Corporation in Chandigarh, had been finalised and would be sent to the UT Administrator for approval. “The move is aimed at enhancing transparency and curbing cross-voting as well as tampering during the mayoral poll,” said the official.
The mayoral elections held in January last year were mired in controversy with presiding officer Anil Masih allegedly caught on camera tampering with the votes.
On October 30, 2024, the MC House passed a resolution that the method of show of hands be used for the future mayoral elections, instead of the provision of secret ballot.
According to the agenda tabled in the House, “To facilitate a transparent and equitable election process for the coming years, it is proposed that the existing Regulations of 1996 be amended. It is recommended that the election for the posts of mayor, senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor be conducted by the means of show of hands. So, it is requested to amend Regulation 6 of the Chandigarh MC (Procedure and Conduct of Business) Regulations, 1996, and the elections be held by show of hands.”
Punjab Governor-cum-UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria had recently directed the officials concerned to initiate the amendment process in the wake of repeated complaints from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress alleging the lack of transparency in the election process.
During the mayoral elections held on January 30, 2024, presiding officer Anil Masih was caught on camera allegedly invalidating eight votes cast in favour of the AAP-Congress alliance candidate Kuldeep Kumar. The BJP candidate Manoj Sonkar was declared the winner.
On a petition filed by an AAP councillor, who alleged wrongdoing during the mayoral polls, the Supreme Court ruled that the vote tampering was deliberate and overturned the result, declaring Kuldeep the rightful winner.
After watching the video, the apex court had said that prima facie, the returning officer was defacing the ballot papers. The verdict marked a historic moment as Chandigarh got its first non-BJP, non-Congress mayor.
Chandigarh