Chandigarh Mayor election on Jan 29: BJP vs AAP-Congress in first-ever show-of-hands vote. How numbers stack up?
On January 29, Chandigarh will will see election for Mayor and Deputy Mayor posts, using a show-of-hands voting system for the first time. With a close contest expected between BJP and the AAP-Congress alliance, the stakes are high in this pivotal municipal election.
The election for the posts of Mayor, Senior Deputy Mayor, and Deputy Mayor of Chandigarh will be held on January 29
For the first time in the city’s history, elections for the three posts will be held using ‘show-of-hands’ by councillors, instead of the secret ballot system. The decision was taken recently after the 2024 vote-rigging fiasco in which the then presiding officer Anil Masih, was caught on camera tampering with the ballots.
While the elected councillors enjoy a five-year term, the mayor, senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor are picked through indirect elections every year in Chandigarh.
How numbers stack up?
As in the past few elections, it is going to be a direct clash between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-Congress alliance. With 35 councillors and one ex officio vote of the sitting Member of Parliament, a camp needs a simple majority of 19 votes to post its member to the top post.
Two AAP councillors had recently defected to the BJP, taking the saffron party’s strength in the House to 18. It just needs one more vote to have its mayor again. The rival camp too has 18 members – 11 councillors of the AAP, six of the Congress and one vote of the MP Manish Tewari, setting the stage for a neck-and-neck battle.
General Category Mayor
The mayoral term for 2026 will be the fifth and final term of the current five-year municipal corporation, which has been in effect from 2022 to 2026.
For the 2026 term, the mayor's post is reserved for the general category. The current mayor's tenure will end on January 29, 2026, meaning the election process must be completed before that.
This time, the mayor will be picked from the general category. While the parties are yet to name their candidates, some report suggested that BJP may pick Maheshinder Singh Sidhu, Saurabh Joshi, Kanwarjit Rana or Anoop Gupta as its candidates.
From the AAP-Congress alliance, the names of Gurpreet Singh Gabi, Yogesh Dhingra and Damanpreet Singh are doing the rounds.
The Election SOPs explained
In accordance with Section 60(a) of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, Dr Ramneek Singh Bedi, nominated councillor, has been designated as the Returning Officer for the meeting to be held for the election of the Mayor.
The Returning Officer shall conduct the meeting and ensure that the election proceedings are carried out strictly in accordance with the law, prescribed procedures, and the approved SOPs.
With the change in the system of holding the election from secret voting to a show of hands, Deputy Commissioner (DC) Nishant Yadav has announced the SOPs to be followed for the new system.
As per the standard operating procedures (SOP), the councillors are required to raise their hands clearly when their choice is called. Votes shall be counted through visual verification, and verbal confirmation.
Proper documentation including maintenance of a register of votes and recording of the minutes of the meeting will also be ensured to avoid any ambiguity or dispute. The video recording shall be preserved for a minimum of 90 days or as directed by the competent authority.
(With agency inputs)