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This is an archive article published on June 19, 2018
Godhra Municipality president poll: Protests after councillors ‘shift’ to BJP, party says ‘part of us’
According to another councillor, who did not wish to be named, the seven were rumoured to have been taken to an undisclosed location and were incommunicando since then and that their families too were unaware of their whereabouts.
Godhra municipality president polls. (File)
Godhra saw protests on Monday after rumours that seven “Independent” councillors had extended support to the BJP for Tuesday’s polls to the post of local municipality president and that they were “whisked away”. The BJP, while maintaining that the seven were “part of the party”, denied that they had shifted them. The seven councillors are Sajid Kala, Ashraf Chanda, Shafiya Bhaijamal, Shoeb Bhimla, Idris Darghai, Ilyas Chanda and Haseena Sheikh.
According to another councillor, who did not wish to be named, the seven were rumoured to have been taken to an undisclosed location and were incommunicando since then and that their families too were unaware of their whereabouts. When The Indian Express tried to contact these members over phone, they could not be reached.
In the 44-member civic body, 18 members are from BJP, one from Congress and 25 Independents. Twenty Independent candidates and the lone Congress member are Muslims. The local body presidential poll is expected to begin at 11 am Tuesday.
“We don’t have to take anyone anywhere, everybody is right here,” said BJP councillor Murli Moolchandnani. “The seven are a part of the BJP. Apart from the 18 BJP councillors, 11 more joined us in the last one year. We have a clear majority already.”
Meanwhile, a section of people burnt effigies of the corporators in Polan Bazaar area of Godhra on Monday evening. Police protection was provided to the families of the seven corporators. Godhra Municipality has not had a Muslim chief since 2002 when the then president Mohammed Hussain Kalota’s tenure was cut short after he was arrested along with three other councillors for allegedly setting fire to Sabarmati Express.
With the 30-month tenure of the Godhra Municipal president concluding on June 22, the polls are scheduled to be held on June 19. The polling was re-scheduled from June 15 after Muslim corporators appealed in the High Court that it clashed with Eid.
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