Chandigarh mayoral battle heats up after AAP councillors cross over to BJP

The development has lifted BJP’s morale, with Chandigarh party president Jatinder Pal Malhotra crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policies for the latest developments. AAP city unit president Vijay Pal Singh responded by saying that “politics always has its ups and downs”.

In the 2021 MC polls, the AAP had emerged as the largest party, winning 14 seats, followed by the BJP with 12 and the Congress with eight. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) secured one ward, though its councillor Hardeep Singh later joined the AAP.

The BJP has won three mayoral elections after the 2021 MC polls. In 2024, AAP candidate Kuldeep Kumar was eventually declared mayor by the Supreme Court after he alleged electoral malpractice by returning officer Anil Masih. Initially, BJP’s Manoj Sonkar had been declared winner, defeating Kumar 16–12, but resigned soon after, while three AAP councillors defected to the BJP.

In 2025, BJP’s Harpreet Babla won the high-stakes mayoral contest against AAP’s Prem Lata, securing 19 votes to her 17. A total of 36 votes were cast, including that of MP Manish Tewari, who is an ex-officio member of the House. The BJP won the poll battle despite the AAP-Congress alliance having 20 councillors in its camp, while BJP had 16.

In January 2025, the voting for mayoral poll was conducted by secret ballot, but this time councillors will cast their votes by raising their hands in the House.

Reacting to the latest defections, Congress leader H S Lucky accused the BJP of “indulging in horse trading” and added that “the AAP too is at fault, as it failed to take care of its councillors”. “We are now concentrating on the 2026 general elections of the MC, where we will secure a thumping majority.”

On the possibility of a Congress-AAP alliance for the January 2026 mayoral polls, Lucky said, “We are not opposed to the idea.”

Meanwhile, AAP leader Vijay Pal Singh remarked, “once the election dates are announced, both parties will deliberate. For now, there is no issue in the alliance.”