Congress wins MC bypoll

The byelection saw a low turnout,with 41.09 per cent polling recorded. Badheri polled 4,091 votes and Malkit got 4,058 votes.

Among independent candidates,Nirmal Kaur Good polled 377 votes,Varinder Guleria 342 votes and Mohammed Kamil 261 votes.

After the result was announced,Badheri took out a victory procession with his supporters; celebrations were also held at his residence. Badheri visited Attawa and Badheri villages and several religious places.

Talking about his priorities,he said Ward 10 comprised Sectors 41 and 42 and Buterla,Badheri and Attawa villages,which had been neglected for long.

“The parks are not developed. Roads are in a bad shape where rain water accumulates. There are no community centres. The residents want a sampark centre in the area. All these aspects would be looked into,” he said.

The byelection was held due to the death of Gurnam Singh,the sitting SAD councillor from the Ward. Gurnam had won from the area with a margin of 1,200 votes.

Though SAD fielded his son Malkit Singh,hoping to cash in on the sympathy factor,he lost.

With Badheri’s win,Congress has 15 councillors in the 35-member House. SAD has been reduced to one member. These numbers would play an important role during the election for the post of the Mayor.

SAD demands checking of EVMs
In a meeting held on Monday,local unit of the Shiromani Akali Dal said they would demand checking of the EVMs used in the byelection by a panel of independent experts.

“We have lost by a slender margin. We feel the Congress workers,with their MP Pawan Kumar Bansal,perhaps tampered with the EVMs,” SAD leader N S Minhas said. The executive members will soon approach the SAD high command to discuss the issue.