Congress, BJP raise objections to draft of ward delimitation

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 26

After the Delimitation Board for the finalisation of new ward system in Municipal Corporation Jalandhar (MCJ) cleared its first draft yesterday in Chandigarh, local Congress and BJP leaders started raising objections over it.

The draft would be made public for inviting objections in about a week. While earlier there were 80 wards, the number has been increased by five. While one ward has been added in Jalandhar Central Assembly constituency, four new wards have been added up in the Cantonment Assembly area.

While all three AAP MLAs, including Raman Arora, Sheetal Angural and Balkar Singh, remained absent, Congress MLAs Pargat Singh, Bawa Henry and Sukhwinder Kotli had attended the meeting of the Delimitation Board yesterday in Chandigarh. The Congress MLAs have pointed out to certain issues. Pargat said, “My main objection in the draft is that the colonies or societies should not be segregated into multiple wards. Some colonies like Urban Estate fall in as many as three wards. While the population of one ward is expected to be around 10,000, Urban Estate has less than 6,000 residents.”

Likewise, Bawa Henry too has raised the issue that the bifurcation of wards should have been done on the basis of main roads but same wards fell on either side of the main road in most localities such as Jandu Singha, Maqsudan and areas around Pathankot Road. “This will hamper development works”, he pointed out. The Congress leaders have also pointed out to alleged anomalies in the reservation of wards.

Former chief parliamentary secretary (CPS) and BJP leader KD Bhandari attacked Henry for crying foul now against the AAP leadership by pointing out anomalies. “The Congress had also acted in a similar manner during previous delimitation done in 2017 and had created wards in such a manner that it disturbed the BJP councillors,” he said. He added, “Like the way the BJP has won in Jalandhar North and Central Assembly segments in the recent LS bypoll of Jalandhar, it will also make a sweep in the MC polls in the city areas.”