After SC verdict on Chandigarh Mayor polls, elections for Senior Dy Mayor, Dy Mayor on Feb 27

The elections for the Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation will be held on February 27 and will be presided over by Chandigarh Mayor Kuldeep Kumar. "The election meeting, as per Regulation 3(1) of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (Procedure and Conduct of Business) Regulations, 1996, will take place on February 27, 2024 (Tuesday) at 10:00 am, at Assembly Hall of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation. Presiding Authority will be Kuldeep Kumar, (Mayor)," office of Deputy Commissioner, Union Territory Chandigarh stated on Friday.

"The Mayor is hereby requested to ensure that elections of Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor are conducted as per relevant orders of Supreme Court and High Court of Punjab and Haryana, Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976 as applicable to U.T. Chandigarh and Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (Procedure and Conduct of Business) Regulations, 1996," it further stated.

"Detailed elections programme shall be issued separately by the Secretary, Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh. Secretary, Municipal Corporation, is also requested to make arrangements for the conduct of elections as per relevant orders of Supreme Court and High Court of Punjab and Haryana," the release said.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday declared Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Kuldeep Kumar as the winner of the Chandigarh mayoral polls.

A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra quashed the decision by Returning Officer Anil Masih, who declared BJP candidate Manoj Kumar Sonkar as Chandigarh Mayor on January 30.

The order of the apex court came as it found that the Returning Officer had deliberately defaced eight ballots that were cast in favour of Kuldeep Kumar so as to make them invalid.

Welcoming the Supreme Court judgement in the Chandigarh mayor polls declaring Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Kuldeep Kumar as the winner of the elections, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said that the verdict is a major victory for the INDIA bloc, adding that the BJP can be defeated with proper planning and strategy.

Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal said, "I think this has happened for the first time in India's history. We thank the Supreme Court. The situation in the country is such that a dictatorship is going on.

Democracy is being trampled. All institutions are being trampled. At such a time, this decision of the Supreme Court holds a lot of significance for democracy."

The apex court today physically examined the ballot papers and found that they are not defaced. It directed that Kuldeep Kumar be declared mayor with 20 votes (12 votes which he received and 8 which were for him and were defaced by Masih).

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from ANI)