Aam Aadmi Party Secures Mayoral Position in Amritsar; Congress Claims Misuse of Government Resources

Jatinder Singh Bhatia from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was elected as the mayor of Amritsar Municipal Corporation. This election, held on Monday, faced allegations from Congress about misuse of government resources by the ruling party. Priyanka Sharma and Anita Rani were chosen as senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor, respectively, according to officials.

Punjab AAP chief Aman Arora expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve Amritsar. "Our team will begin work immediately to transform Amritsar into a beautiful and well-developed city. The guarantees in our corporation manifesto will be implemented without delay. We extend our gratitude to the SAD councilors for their support," he stated.

Congress Alleges Misuse of Power

The Congress party, which had hoped for its candidate's victory, criticised AAP for allegedly misusing government machinery. Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring and senior leader Partap Singh Bajwa led a protest outside the government medical college, where the elections took place.

Warring accused AAP of extreme power hunger, claiming they used police to block Congress councillors from voting. "Deploying the police commissioner and the entire police force to prevent our councillors from participating in the election process was a blatant violation of democracy," he alleged.

Claims of Unfair Election Process

Warring further claimed that AAP announced its mayor without proper voting, calling it a "clear murder of democracy." He alleged that AAP bypassed fair elections to secure an unjust victory. Bajwa echoed these sentiments, stating that with Congress holding a majority, police were used as tools by the government.

Bajwa accused AAP of trying to impose its own mayor by obstructing Congress members from entering the polling centre. "The AAP wants to strangle democracy and impose its own mayor, but we will never allow this to happen," he said.

AAP's Commitment to Amritsar's Development

Newly-elected mayor Bhatia expressed his gratitude towards AAP leadership and pledged to focus on Amritsar's basic issues. "Amritsars primary concerns, including cleanliness and sewerage problems, will be addressed immediately," he promised.

Bhatia thanked both the leadership and councillors for their trust in him. He emphasised his commitment to addressing key issues affecting the city promptly.

The Congress plans to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking justice over what they describe as an unfair election process. They aim to challenge what they perceive as a manipulation of democratic procedures by AAP during the mayoral polls.