Chandigarh Mayor Elections: AAP, Congress Go Solo, Setting Up Triangular Contest

The political intensity for the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation Mayor elections, scheduled for January 29, has heightened as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress have decided to contest independently, quashing any speculation of an alliance. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which holds 18 seats in the 35-member house—the exact number required for a majority—has announced Saurabh Joshi as its mayoral candidate. Congress has nominated Gurpreet Gabbi for Mayor, Sachin Galav for Senior Deputy Mayor, and Nirmala Devi for Deputy Mayor. Concurrently, AAP has put forward Yogesh Dhingra for Mayor, Munavvar Khan for Senior Deputy Mayor, and Jaswinder Kaur for Deputy Mayor. With 18 votes needed for a majority and the BJP already at that number, the decision by all three major parties to contest separately creates a highly unpredictable, three-cornered electoral battle, potentially simplifying the path for the BJP.