Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader Pawan Bansal condemned the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for what he termed as the strangulation of democracy due to the postponement of the Chandigarh mayoral polls, likening it to the murder of democracy.
According to Bansal, the events unfolding outside the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation at 10:30 am on Thursday will be remembered as a black day not only in Chandigarh’s democratic history but in the entire history of India.
Expressing his confusion over BJP’s claim of victory despite favourable mathematics, Bansal highlighted the incidents where first the Secretary fell ill, and today the Presiding Officer was reported sick.
When Aam Aadmi Party and Congress councilors arrived for the mayoral election, they were halted outside the Corporation and informed of the election’s postponement, citing the illness of the Presiding Officer. Despite being present with passes due to tight security and Section 144, Bansal and others were denied a clear explanation for the postponement.
Bansal accused the BJP of strategically postponing the elections when they foresaw the certain victory of the India Bloc. He alleged that this unprecedented move indicates BJP’s displeasure with India Bloc’s success and suggested that BJP might be averse to conducting elections anywhere in India in the future. As per Bansal, this represents the darkest day in the history of Indian democracy, urging citizens to reflect on this and make informed decisions about casting their votes.
In conclusion, Bansal emphasized the need for the people of India to learn a lesson from these events, urging them to consider the gravity of the situation and decide where to place their valuable votes in the future.
