Moga mayoral poll to be held by Jan 31, state govt assures HC

The Punjab Government has assured the High Court that the poll to elect the Moga mayor will be held by January 31.

The assurance has come more than a month a half after the post fell vacant following the resignation of Baljit Singh Chani, who was expelled from ruling AAP over alleged “links” with drug cartels.

He had resigned from the mayor’s post on November 27. The government assured the court to hold the election by January 31 during a hearing on a writ petition filed by group of residents and councillors, seeking immediate election to fill the vacancy.

The petition alleged that the state failed to adhere to the time frame prescribed under law for holding the election. The matter was heard by a Division Bench comprising Justice Harsimran Singh Sethi and Justice Vikas Suri. After Chani stepped down, senior deputy mayor Parveen Kumar Sharma was appointed officiating mayor.

The petitioners argued that the officiating arrangement was purely temporary and that Section 38(3) of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, mandates that a fresh election to the post must be held within one month of the vacancy.

The plea said repeated representations were made to the authorities, initially on December 4 and again on December 24, as the deadline approached.