07-05-2025
SAD-BJP unite to oppose no-confidence motion against Kharar MC president
Mohali: In a dramatic development, leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) closed ranks to resist a no-confidence motion filed against Jaspreet Kaur Longia , sitting president of the Kharar Municipal Council (MC).Senior leaders N K Sharma, Ranjit Gill, Parvinder Sohana, Charanjit Kalewal, and BJP's Vineet Joshi voiced strong opposition to what they described as Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) "high-handedness and misuse of power." Addressing a joint press conference, the alliance leaders alleged that AAP was pressuring councillors who support SAD using administrative machinery, including the police. "AAP is attempting to hijack the democratic process in Kharar by threatening and coercing councillors," said SAD leader Ranjit Gill. "We, the SAD-BJP alliance, are united in our stand to save the duly-elected president from being ousted under duress," they Derabassi MLA and senior SAD leader, N K Sharma, accused AAP of blatant misuse of state power. "Police officers have been sent to homes and workplaces of councillors supporting SAD. This is a clear attempt to intimidate them into switching sides," Sharma claimed. BJP's Vineet Joshi and SAD leaders Parvinder Sohana and Charanjit Kalewal also condemned AAP's alleged pressure tactics and pledged full support to president crisis erupted when 18 councillors submitted a written request to the executive officer of the Kharar Municipal Council, seeking a special meeting to introduce a no-confidence motion against Longia. The signatories, including councillors from Congress, AAP, and a few independents, cited a lack of confidence in Longia's leadership and claimed that she no longer enjoyed majority group invoked relevant provisions of the Punjab Municipal Act, urging the executive officer to convene a session to allow a formal floor test. The 27-member Kharar MC is composed of eight SAD councillors, eight independents, one AAP councillor, and 10 Congress Kaur Longia was previously elected as president with the support of independent councillors, despite SAD not holding a majority on its own. With shifting alliances and political tension mounting, the no-confidence motion poses a serious challenge to the SAD-led leadership in Kharar. The president will be given a chance to prove her majority in the house as per statutory 120936432 413 |
