Panchkula MC told to fix date for Sr Dy Mayor, Dy Mayor election

Sanjay Bumbroo

Panchkula, April 18

Finally, the state government has decided to hold elections to the posts of Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor of the local Municipal Corporation (MC).

The Urban Local Bodies Department has written to the MC authorities to hold elections to both posts. The authorities have sent the file to the Mayor for fixing the date of the elections.

The elections to the posts of Mayor and 20 councillors were held in 2020. They assumed charge in the first week of January, 2021. As per Section 36 of the Haryana Municipal Corporation and 71 and 72 of the Election Rules, the elections to the posts of Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor were to be held within 60 days after the notification by the Election Commission about the councillors’ poll.

In Ambala and Sonepat, the elections to the two posts were held soon after the councillors’ election.

There are 10 councillors of the BJP, two of the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), seven of the Congress and one Independent in the local MC House. Fearing a rebellion in the party, the BJP had not announced any candidate for the two posts. The Mayor is of the BJP and the JJP is a coalition partner of the BJP. The JJP is trying to get its man appointed to one of the two posts.

The department had written to the corporation to hold the elections to the two posts earlier too.

The JJP District President (Urban), OP Sihag, said they had taken up the issue with the Municipal Commissioner as well as the Divisional Commissioner, Ambala. The MC election results were announced in December 20, 2020, and the elections to the two posts should have been held in the first week of January, 2021.

The Congress said they had submitted letters with the signatures of 10 councillors to the MC authorities twice, but to no avail.

Mayor Kulbhushan Goyal said he was yet to see the letter sent by the department. The BJP would field its candidates for the two posts, he added.

What rules say

The elections to the posts of Mayor and 20 councillors were held in 2020. They assumed charge in the first week of January, 2021. As per Section 36 of the Haryana Municipal Corporation and 71 and 72 of the Election Rules, the elections to the posts of Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor are to be held within 60 days after the notification by the Election Commission about the councillors’ poll.