Cong coercing councillors to take over Bathinda MC: SAD

BATHINDA : The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has accused the Congress of using pressure tactics to take control of the Bathinda municipal corporation (MC), which is headed by Akali leader Balwant Rai Nath.

The 50-member House has 22 Akali councillors and six from the ally BJP. While 15 councillors belong to the Congress, 7 are independents.

SAD leader and former Bathinda Urban MLA Sarup Chand Singla alleged the Congress is making attempts to bring councillors from the ruling SADBJP alliance and independents into their party fold to initiate no-confidence motion against Nath. “The councillors are telling us that they are being approached by the Congress,” he said. Singla, however, said the party was intact.

SAD councillor Harjinder Singh had alleged during a press conference on Thursday that Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA) was forcing him to vacate his house if he did not join the Congress.

The development comes after Congress leader and state finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal won the assembly election from Bathinda Urban. The MC comes within this segment.

Refuting the allegation, district Congress (urban) president Mohan Lal Jhumba said many senior SAD leaders and councillors are approaching the Congress to join the party. “Two councillors have already joined the Congress during the Punjab poll campaign,” he said.

There are also reports of mayor Balwant Rai Nath cosying up to the Congress. Nath was in the Congress before joining the SAD ahead of MC elections in February 2015. The mayor, however, has denied these reports.