An alliance of the Bharatiya Janta Party and the Shiromani Akali Dal has swept the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation elections, winning 21 of the 26 wards for which polls were conducted.
When the result were declared here on Tuesday, the BJP won 20 seats and the SAD one. The Congress bagged four. One seat went to an Independent candidate, an election office spokesperson said.
Ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections early next year, the municipal polls were considered crucial for the BJP in the post-demonetisation scene. The victory is seen as a big boost for the party and the Akali Dal. BJP supporters were seen celebrating outside the party office, describing the win as a victory of the “pro-people policies” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Mr. Modi attributed the victory to good governance. “Thank you to the people of Chandigarh for supporting BJP and Akali Dal. This shows the importance people attach to good governance,” he tweeted.
Demonetisation plank
Congratulating local party leaders and workers, BJP president Amit Shah tweeted: “BJP’s landslide win in Chandigarh is yet another instance of people reposing their faith in BJP’s development politics and PM’s vision.” “Since the banning of high-value notes, we have been repeatedly winning — first it was in the by-elections in five States, then Thane municipal polls, Rajasthan polls, Gujarat polls — and now in Chandigarh, people have accepted BJP and its policies,” he told presspersons.
Notably, while the BJP made efforts to reap electoral benefits on demonetisation, the Congress had approached people saying the ill-conceived decision had caused hardship.
Terming the victory a trailer, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said this result would prove a trendsetter for ensuring back-to-back victory of the alliance for the third consecutive term in Punjab.
This massive mandatehad silenced the Opposition for unleashing malicious propaganda to defame the government, he said.
The Congress contested all 26 seats, while the Bahujan Samaj Party had fielded candidates in 17 wards. Polling was held on December 18.
The municipal corporation has 36 members, of which 26 are elected and nine are nominated. The Chandigarh MP is an ex-officio member.
