MLA Kulwant Singh’s son Sarabjeet elected Mohali mayor

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Sarabjeet Singh Samana, 35, was elected mayor of Mohali municipal corporation on Tuesday through a show of hands, consolidating the party’s control over both the civic body and the assembly constituency. The election took place after all 50 newly elected councillors took oath, with Rupnagar divisional commissioner Manvesh Singh Sidhu supervising the proceedings. Samana secured the post with support from 27 AAP councillors, four Independents, two BJP councillors, one Congress councillor, and the ex-officio vote of his father, MLA Kulwant Singh, who previously served as Mohali’s first mayor in 2015. This victory marks Samana’s third term as a councillor and makes him the second mayor from Kulwant Singh’s family, following Congress’s Amarjeet Singh (Jeeti) Sidhu’s tenure in 2021. The AAP now holds a ‘double-engine government’ in Mohali, a key urban constituency in Punjab, ahead of the 2025 assembly elections. Party leaders, including Punjab president Aman Arora, framed the result as a mandate for Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s governance model, promising accelerated development projects. The election was marred by controversy as Congress councillors boycotted voting, citing dynastic politics. Former Punjab health minister Balbir Singh Sidhu accused the AAP of ignoring senior leaders by electing Samana, while also criticizing the absence of women in key posts. Congress staged a walkout during oath-taking, with councillor Narpinder Singh Rangi protesting the proceedings. Despite the opposition’s objections, the AAP’s allies ensured the victory, with AAP district president Prabhjot Kaur and Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board chairman Dr Sunny Singh Ahluwalia present to support the new leadership. The mayoral election underscores Mohali’s political significance in Punjab, where the AAP’s control over both the assembly seat and municipal corporation strengthens its urban influence. Arora pledged to develop Mohali into a ‘model city,’ while Ahluwalia emphasized coordination between the AAP team and municipal officials to fast-track civic projects. The victory also highlights the party’s strategy ahead of next year’s elections, where urban constituencies like Mohali are expected to play a decisive role.