BJP, Congress locked in direct contest in Ambala mayoral byelection
The BJP and Congress are set to be locked in a direct contest in the byelection of the Mayor's post of the Ambala Municipal Corporation (MC).
Shakti Rani Sharma had won the mayoral election on the ticket of the Haryana Jan Chetna Party by defeating the BJP candidate in 2020. However, last year, she joined the BJP and won the Assembly election from Kalka, following which the seat of the Mayor fell vacant.
The issue of waterlogging during monsoon, no-dues certificates, property ID, sanitation, garbage collection, roads and development works in the wards will be the major issues.
Congress councillor from Ward 10 Mithun Verma said, “The development works in the wards have come to a standstill and Ambala City has failed to get any major project under the BJP government. Civil works were stopped even after releasing work orders, and the streets are in a poor condition. A majority of the projects have been lying pending even after missing deadlines multiple times. The Haryana Jan Chetna Party worked as B-team of the BJP in the MC, and both failed to work for the welfare of people.”
Congress ticket aspirant Amisha Chawla, who had unsuccessfully contested the mayoral election, said, “Corrupt practices are rampant in the MC and residents are forced to make repeated rounds to get their work done. Sanitation is poor and roads are in a bad condition. Ambala City witnesses severe waterlogging during monsoon, but nothing has been done on the ground to provide relief to the residents. We will raise all these issues during the campaign.”
BJP leader Shailja Sachdeva said, “With the suggestions of the people of Ambala City, we will prepare our manifesto and work accordingly. The triple-engine government of the BJP will ensure development of Ambala City. Our prime focus will be to ensure that the residents don’t face waterlogging-related issues.”
