After 'cross-voting' by 3 councillors, BJP's Harpreet Babla is new Mayor of Chandigarh

After alleged 'cross-voting' by three councillors, BJP's Harpreet Kaur Babla was elected new Mayor of Chandigarh.

Babla got 19 votes, while her nearest rival AAP candidate Prem Lata got 17 votes.

However, Congress candidate Jasbir Singh Bunty secured the post of Senior Deputy Mayor.

He got 19 votes, while his nearest rival and BJP candidate Bimla Dubey secured 17 votes. This time the seat, with a tenure of a year, was reserved for women. In the run-up to the polls, the Congress' senior woman councillor Gurbax Rawat has switched loyalties and joined the BJP.

Congress candidate Taruna Mehta has been elected Deputy mayor. She defeated BJP candidate Lakhbir Singh Billu. Mehta got 19 votes while Billu secured 17.

In the 35-member House, the AAP-Congress alliance has 19 councillors -- 13 votes of AAP and six of the Congress, while the BJP has 16 votes.

The year-old alliance also banked on one vote of ex-officio member and its MP Manish Tewari, taking its total votes to 20.

The BJP was relying on cross-voting or defections to achieve the 19-vote mark for a majority.

Voting began at 11 am through a secret ballot.