Mohali MC set to dissolve on April 26, poll date undecided

Mohali municipal corporation’s five-year term is due to get over on April 26, wherein powers will be vested with new MC commissioner Kamal Kumar Garg. The posts of mayor, senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor will also be dissolved.

With this, the five-year tenure of mayor Kulwant Singh will come to an end. In the April of 2015, 50 councillors had taken oath. Currently, the Congress has 14 councillors, SAD-BJP and Azad group have 33 and two are independent.

MC commissioner Kamal Kumar Garg said a notification in this regard had been issued and the term will get over on April 26. The date for elections has not been announced yet, but it has been notified that elections will be held in 50 wards only and reservation of candidates, too, has been fixed, Garg said.

Mayor Kulwant Singh said that they will be holding a meeting with councillors through video conferencing to say goodbye. “I am happy about the way we carried out development works in the past five years,” he said.

Deputy mayor Manjit Singh Sethi said, “After the lockdown ends, the state government should immediately think about holding its elections, so that all development works in Mohali are carried out effectively.” He also said he was thankful to all 50 councillors who contributed in developing the city.

TUSSLE BETWEEN MAYOR, MINISTER
The five-year term witnessed many clashes between mayor Kulwant Singh and local MLA and cabinet minister Balbir Singh Sidhu over several issues. In February this year, Sidhu stated that all development works carried out in Mohali in the past eight months were done by the state government, while the mayor had accused the state government of delaying approvals for developmental works.

POLLS: NOTIFICATION, BUT NO DATE
In December last year, Punjab government has issued a notification regarding Mohali MC elections.

Although the date of elections is undecided, the notification says the polls will be held in 50 wards wherein 2.36 lakh voters are expected to cast their vote. Five seats have been reserved for scheduled castes (two for women (SC) and three for backward classes); two seats are for women (backward classes), 43 seats for general category, of which 23 are for women. The mayor is elected for a period of five years.