Row over Chandigarh mayor election | ‘Imagine what BJP can do in LS polls’: Opp slams ‘misuse of electoral machinery’

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said it was beyond imagination what the BJP, “which can kill democracy in front of the whole world in the mayor elections”, will do to remain in power in Delhi (in the Lok Sabha elections). “Years ago, on this day, Godse had assassinated Gandhi-ji and today Godseists sacrificed his ideals and constitutional values,” Rahul said.

CPI general secretary D Raja said the “BJP’s lust for power” was most evident in Chandigarh mayor elections. He said rejecting eight votes of councillors belonging to the INDIA bloc shows their desperation. “People should see that if BJP can stoop this low for a mayorship, what extent can they go to in Parliament elections,” Raja said.

Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav said the manner in which the BJP has “misused its power and rigged the elections to win by putting pressure on the officials despite not having majority in the Chandigarh mayor elections, the Election Commission and the Supreme Court should immediately take cognizance of the same, should cancel these results, conduct elections under their supervision, declare rational results and take punitive action against those guilty of this democratic crime”.

“The BJP is swallowing democracy. Such brutality of power will prove to be very dangerous for the country and its people,” Yadav said.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said, “The Chandigarh mayor polls is yet another example of BJPfied idea of India’s democratic process. A serious blot where only INC-AAP members’ votes were invalidated to ensure BJP’s victory despite not having the numbers.” Chaturvedi added that it will be a “shame if the courts don’t intervene to restore procedures and ensure a free and fair election”.

All India Trinamool Congress MP and national spokesperson Saket Gokhale said “shameless BJP literally rigged and manipulated the Chandigarh mayor election by arbitrarily declaring eight INC-AAP votes invalid”.

“No matter what Noida channels tell you- these manipulations show that BJP is not going into 2024 elections confidently. Be prepared for every possible kind of cheating, lies, & much worse from BJP & Modi before the Lok Sabha elections,” Gokhale posted on “X”.