Punjab Government is apparently dragging its feet to conduct the impending municipal elections, citing the incomplete process of ward delimitation as its reason.
Virtually buying time, the ruling Congress party is “delaying” the elections to execute some of its promises before going among the masses to seek votes.
The term of the current House of four Municipal Corporations and 32 Municipal Councils will end on September 10. But, the state local Government Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Sunday maintained that the elections may delay due to incomplete delimitation process.
At the same time, he also gave enough indications to say that the elections be delayed further to enable the state government to project development works. For that, the party would also involve the Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh.
“The work of ward delimitation has not yet been completed. The door-to-door survey of four to five lakh voters in ludhiana is stills remaining. In this situation, it is possible to conduct elections only after this delimitation process is completed,” said Sidhu, after conducting a day-long meeting with the Congress leaders.
Sidhu, along with Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar, held a meeting with the concerned MlAs and party councillors of Amritsar, ludhiana, Jalandhar and Patiala to discuss the agenda of civic elections and other related issues. The party has given the responsibility of securing Congress victory in municipal polls to Jakhar and Sidhu.
Presently, SAD-BJP alliance has its mayors in these corporations.
Elected with a massive mandate in February assembly polls, the Congress government is facing criticism from different sections of the society for not living up to its words and failing to fulfil its promises including complete farm debt waiver, eliminating drugs within a month of coming to power, ending all mafias, among other things.
In fact, the Congress government is now alleged of stand-in alike its predecessor — SAD-BJP combine. Its senior leaders were accused of running sand business, and land grabbing. It was also criticised for not acting against the “SAD” leaders who the Congress has all along been accusing of running various mafias, looting Punjab, involved in drug business.
Even as the Congress government has set the balling rolling to fulfil some of its pre-poll promises by including the same in its first budget, it succeeded only halfway.
Maintaining that the local Government Department would first complete the ward delimitation process, Sidhu said: “The elections for the urban local bodies are pending on September 10, but till then, the work of delimitation will not be completed. So we have decided that an administrator would be appointed in these municipal corporations and municipalities from September 10, when their term will end.”
“In this way, it will be ensured that their work will not be affected and the delimitation process be completed at the earliest so that the municipal elections will be conducted as soon as possible,” he said.
Sidhu asserted that the dates for conducting polls are yet to be decided, and the main focus of Sunday’s meeting was to zero in on the agenda and issues the party would take up in the elections.
Sidhu admitted that the government may delay the elections further to enable the state government to “show up its development works”.
“The Congress would go to polls on development agenda,” said Sidhu and Jakhar, while addressing the press conference later on.
They said that all the legislators have been asked to take the work done by the government in the people to seek votes.
“Congress Government would restore the rule of law and strengthen the democracy by holding the MC elections in a transparent manner. Congress government has made certain promises with the people of Punjab and they would like to go to seek votes after promises are fulfilled,” said Sidhu.
“We would request the Chief Minister to give four days for each of the Municipal Corporation and visit these four cities and formulate a roadmap of development of urban areas,” he elaborated.
At the same, Sidhu made it clear that there was “no dearth of funds” with the local Self-Government and the revenue would increase with the GST (Goods and Services Tax) regime.
“We are getting Rs 1,600 from 11 percent share in the VAT (value added tax). The Centre government has promised to increase the committed revenue by 14 percent,” he said adding that the plan of development works are being chalked out and every city will get its due.
Blaming the erstwhile SAD-BJP combine, he said that in the previous government, no development was done and only propaganda was made to win the elections.
“The people will be told how the previous government has ruined the cities. Half of the cities even today don’t have sewerage system…People do not have clean drinking water,” alleged Sidhu, adding that the holy city of Amritsar and Heritage Street built near the Golden Temple was flooded in the first rain only.
“Badals’ water bus bought fir Harike should be used here to ferry devotees to Golden Temple,” quipped Jakhar.
GST: GOVT TO ADDRESS TRADERS’ CONCERN
Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar on Sunday maintained that the Congress government would address the issues of traders, who are confused and scared after the implementation of GST.
“The government would reach out to the traders to remove their grievances on the GST,” said Jakhar.
He added, “GST is the baby of Congress but the BJP presented it in different model.”