Chandigarh mayoral polls: AAP-Congress seal alliance; first big step for INDIA bloc

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress seemed to have crossed the first hurdle in firming up their alliance for this year's Lok Sabha elections by deciding to join hands and defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the January 18 Chandigarh mayor polls.

The three Congress councillors Jasbir Singh Bunty, Gurpreet Singh Gabi and Nirmala Devi, who had on Saturday filed their nominations for the posts of mayor, senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor respectively, are likely to withdraw their candidature in favour of the AAP nominees. 

The AAP has fielded councillors Kuldeep Kumar, Neha Musavat and Poonam Sandeep Kumar for the posts of mayor, senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor respectively.

AAP general secretary in-charge of organisation Sandeep Pathak played a key role in sealing the deal. While he kept lines of communication open with both the central leadership of the Congress and its local unit despite initial hiccups from both sides, his ground managers were tasked with the responsibilities of man-to-man marking to keep the flock together. 

The BJP tried to upset the AAP calculations by poaching one of its councillors but Arvind Kejriwal's party paid back the saffron party with the same coin. An aggressive AAP stunned the BJP by poaching one of its councillors to restore the original strength. 

In the 35-member Chandigarh municipal council, the BJP has 14 councillors followed by the AAP with 13. While the Congress has seven councillors, the Shiromani Akali Dal has one. 

Lok Sabha member from Chandigarh Kiron Kher of the BJP too can vote in this election. 

The mayor polls in Chandigarh are held every year and the post is currently held by the BJP. This time, the post is reserved for a Scheduled Caste candidate. 

In the past two years, the Congress had abstained from voting, enabling the BJP to win the elections. 

As per the agreement, the mayor will be from the AAP while the posts of senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor will go to the Congress. 

The elections, scheduled to be held on January 18, are billed as the first major test for the INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) bloc ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. 

The coming together of the two parties will make it difficult for the BJP to retain the posts not only in the Chandigarh municipal council but also give it a tough fight in the Lok Sabha elections from the seat.