Chandigarh Congress Leaders Meet Councillor After Clash With BJP Workers

Chandigarh Congress leaders on Wednesday met party councillor Jasbir Singh Bunty at his home here after the Congress moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court with a habeas corpus petition, accusing police of not allowing them to meet him.

The development came a day after a fight broke out between BJP and Congress-AAP workers when Mr Bunty came to withdraw his nomination papers from the post of mayor at the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation office. The mayoral polls of the civic body will be held on Thursday.

President of the Congress' Chandigarh unit H S Lucky had alleged that BJP workers had tried to take Mr Bunty away forcibly from the corporation's office. The Congress had also accused the BJP of misusing police to poach him.

Mr Lucky said he was allowed to meet Mr Bunty at his residence here by police. Senior Congress leader Pawan Kumar Bansal also met the councillor.

During the meeting, Mr Bunty reiterated that he was with the Congress, Mr Lucky said. Mr Bunty and his father also posed for a photo with Mr Bansal and Mr Lucky.

Mr Lucky said he had moved the high court on Tuesday night against the Chandigarh Police for not allowing Congress leaders to meet Mr Bunty, alleging he had been "detained" at his residence.

The BJP has rejected the allegations, saying it was Mr Bunty's father who had alleged that he was not allowed to meet his son by the Congress.

In the habeas corpus, the petitioner's counsel submitted before justice Alok Jain that police authorities were not letting Mr Bunty move freely which is a violation of his fundamental rights.

Following the fight between BJP and Congress-AAP workers, police had brought Bunty to his residence in Attawa here from the municipal corporation's office. Several policemen have been deployed outside the Mr Bunty's residence.

He was initially the Congress' candidate for the post of mayor.

But after the Congress and the AAP sealed an alliance for the mayoral posts, a decision was taken that the AAP will fight for the post of mayor and the Congress nominees will contest the posts of senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor.

The AAP and the Congress forged an alliance on Monday for the upcoming Chandigarh mayoral polls.

In the 35-member Chandigarh Municipal Corporation, the BJP has 14 councillors. It also has an ex-officio member MP who has voting rights.

The AAP has 13 councillors and the Congress seven. The Shiromani Akali Dal has one councillor in the House.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)