I.N.D.I.A Bloc Suffers First Defeat As BJP's Manoj Sonkar Wins Chandigarh Mayor Elections

The second round of voting for the senior deputy and deputy mayor positions will be held shortly. 

Representational Image. ( Image Source :PTI )

In a major setback for INDIA bloc, BJP candidate Manoj Sonkar has been elected as a new mayor in the first round of voting that has been recently concluded. The second round of voting for the senior deputy and deputy mayor positions will be held shortly. Manoj Sonkar defeated AAP's candidate Kuldeep Kumar. 

Chandigarh mayoral polls: BJP candidate Manoj Sonkar wins post of mayor, defeats AAP's Kuldeep Kumar

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) January 30, 2024

In the second round, Kuljeet Sandhu of the BJP will face Congress's Gurpreet Singh Gabi for the role of senior deputy mayor, while Rajinder Sharma of the BJP and Nirmala Devi of the Congress will compete for the position of deputy mayor.

Taking to X, AAP national convener and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal stated: "The kind of foul play that has been in Chandigarh Mayor Election in broad daylight, is a matter of concern. If they stoop to this level in a Mayor election, they can go to any level in the general election. This is very worrying."

चंडीगढ़ मेयर चुनाव में दिन दहाड़े जिस तरह से बेईमानी की गई है, वो बेहद चिंताजनक है। यदि एक मेयर चुनाव में ये लोग इतना गिर सकते हैं तो देश के चुनाव में तो ये किसी भी हद तक जा सकते हैं। ये बेहद चिंताजनक है।

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) January 30, 2024

The high-stakes Chandigarh mayoral elections resumed today after being postponed owing to presiding officer Anil Masih's illness.

The earlier postponement of the polls only seconds before councillors were due to vote sparked protests from the Aam Aadmi Party and Congress members, who accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of engineering the turn of events.

The mayoral elections were viewed as the first litmus test run for the INDIA alliance vs the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, which are scheduled to be held later this year. With first round going to BJP, INDIA bloc suffers a setback. 

The voting began at 11 a.m. in the Assembly Hall of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (MC), Sector 17.

Approximately 700 police officers and paramilitary men have been deployed to maintain law and order at the municipal corporation building throughout the election.