Police in Chandigarh used a water cannon and resorted to lathi-charge on Wednesday to disperse members of the student wing of Congress, NSUI, who were marching towards the BJP office to protest against the alleged rigging of the Chandigarh mayoral polls. The protesters, led by NSUI Chandigarh president Sachin Galav, raised slogans against the BJP and demanded the arrest of the Presiding Officer, Anil Masih, for allegedly tampering with the ballot papers during the January 30 mayoral elections.

A large contingent of police was deployed, and barricades were erected in Sector 35 to prevent the protesters from reaching the BJP office. When the protesters tried to force their way through the barricades, police used a water cannon and resorted to lathi-charge to disperse them.

Speaking to reporters, Galav accused the BJP of rigging the mayoral polls and murdering democracy. He questioned the BJP’s actions during the mayoral polls and expressed concerns for the upcoming general elections. Galav also criticized the Chandigarh deputy commissioner and municipal corporation officials for allegedly acting at the behest of the BJP.

Since the alleged rigging of the mayoral polls, both the Congress and the AAP have been protesting against the BJP. The two parties had joined forces to challenge the BJP in the elections.

The BJP emerged victorious in the Chandigarh mayoral polls held on January 30, with Manoj Sonkar winning the mayor’s post with 16 votes. Kuldeep Kumar, the AAP candidate, received 12 votes, while eight votes were declared invalid. Opposition councillors accused the presiding officer of tampering with the ballot papers, a charge that the BJP denied.

Appalled by the alleged defacing of ballot papers, the Supreme Court expressed its displeasure and ordered the preservation of the ballots and the video of the electoral proceedings. The court issued notices to the Chandigarh authorities, including the civic body, in response to a plea by an AAP councillor, who alleged wrongdoing during the polls. The court bench, comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, Justice J B Pardiwala, and Justice Manoj Misra, observed that the returning officer appeared to be defacing the ballot papers based on prima facie evidence.