Phagwara, January 11: With 21 elected councillors, the Congress appears well-prepared to secure the mayoral post in the Phagwara municipal corporation (MC), supported by three Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) councillors and four Independents.
The schedule for the elections is yet to be announced, but the numbers heavily favor Congress.
A party requires 26 votes in the 50-member MC House to secure the positions of mayor, senior deputy mayor, and deputy mayor.
This count rises to 51 when including the Phagwara MLA’s vote as an ex-officio member. Congress currently has 29 votes, including its own councillors, allies from the BSP and Independents, and the vote of Phagwara MLA Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal.
Despite having only 12 seats, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) remains optimistic. Reports suggest the party is holding discussions with councillors from rival parties in an effort to reach the majority mark.
However, senior Congress leaders dismiss AAP’s attempts. “Even if AAP gathers support from others, they won’t have enough votes to elect their own mayor,” said a Congress leader.
The remaining seats in the House are split between the BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which have four councillors each, and six Independents.
All three BSP councillors have already pledged their support to Congress, further solidifying its position.
Congress’ Phagwara MLA Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal has been actively engaging with party councillors to discuss potential candidates for the three top posts.
“We will announce the names once election dates are finalized,” Dhaliwal stated. Prominent contenders for the mayoral post include Sanjeev Bugga, Ram Paul Uppal, Padam Dev Sudhir, Munish Prabhakar, and Sushil Maini.
Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring has also convened meetings with newly elected councillors, bolstering the party’s preparations for the elections.
