In the aftermath of the Chandigarh mayoral election on Tuesday, where the BJP emerged victorious, allegations of vote tampering surfaced after the chair disqualified eight Opposition votes in a contentious decision.
Kuldeep Dhalor, an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor and mayoral candidate who lost the election, moved to the Supreme Court on Thursday. This comes after the Punjab and Haryana High Court declined an immediate stay on the election results, where BJP's Manoj Sonkar was declared the mayor.
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Dhalor had initially challenged the decision in the high court on Wednesday, but the court refused to stay the election, scheduling a hearing for three weeks later. Now, Dhalor alleges in the Supreme Court that the presiding officer, Anil Masih, prevented the nominees of the contesting parties from overseeing the vote counting process.
In a parallel development, Anil Masih, the presiding officer, has received round-the-clock police protection from Chandigarh Police due to alleged threats from Congress and AAP party leaders. Masih, a key member of BJP's Chandigarh unit since 2015, expressed concern for his family's safety.
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Dhalor's plea contends that not staying the election results allows the alleged fraud to persist, and the continuation of Manoj Sonkar as mayor validates a corrupt practice, undermining the fundamental democratic principle of free and fair elections and eroding public trust. The controversy unfolds against the backdrop of heightened tensions and protests surrounding the disputed mayoral election.
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