The proposed redrawing of municipal ward boundaries in Panchkula has sent shockwaves through the political landscape, forcing parties to recalibrate their strategies well in advance of the civic body elections scheduled for early next year. The draft report from the ward delimitation committee, made public recently, has fundamentally altered the electoral map, disrupting the plans of numerous aspirants.
New Ward Map Reshapes Political Equations
The core of the upheaval lies in the committee's effort to balance voter strength across all 20 municipal wards. Previously, wards had wide disparities in the number of voters. The new proposal rationalises this, aiming for a range of approximately 8,500 to 11,000 voters per ward. The current term of the mayor and councillors ends on January 5, 2026, setting the stage for a high-stakes contest.
The political battle is primarily seen as a direct fight between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Indian National Congress. In the last municipal elections in December 2020, the BJP won nine wards, the Congress secured seven, the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) got two, and two Independents were victorious. The mayor's post is currently held by BJP's Kulbhushan Goyal.
Reservation Changes Narrow Options for Leaders
The revised ward structure introduces significant changes in reservation categories, creating fresh challenges for established leaders. Wards 7 and 17 have been reserved for the Backward Class (BC) category. The reservation of Ward 17, which now includes parts of rural areas along with sectors 23, 24, and 25, has impacted nearly half a dozen BJP aspirants who were preparing to contest from there.
In a major development affecting the Congress, Ward 19 has been reserved for Backward Class-A. This ward is significant as it now includes Dabkouri village, narrowing the political options for the current Congress councillor and Leader of Opposition, Salim Dabkouri. He was earlier elected from Ward 20, which is now reserved for Backward Class-B, leaving him with the choice to contest from the newly reserved Ward 19 if he decides to run.
Allegations and the Road Ahead
The delimitation process has not been without controversy. The JJP has raised serious objections, with its district president, OP Sihag, alleging large-scale violations of rules. Sihag claimed that established delimitation principles were ignored, with geographically disconnected areas being clubbed together under external pressure. He also questioned the official population data, alleging an unexplained decline in Panchkula's figures.
The Urban Local Bodies (ULB) department will now invite objections from the public on the draft plan for one month before finalising the boundaries. The Congress, which returned to power in the recent state Assembly elections, now faces the challenge of adapting its strategy to the new ward equations. Similarly, the BJP, working to regain momentum after Assembly setbacks, finds the restructured wards adding internal complexities, especially for leaders who had already begun outreach in specific sectors.
The exercise was finalised by Deputy Commissioner and committee chairman Satpal Sharma, making Panchkula the first district in Haryana to complete the delimitation process for the upcoming municipal polls.
Know Your Proposed Ward
The new ward composition is as follows:
- Ward 1: Saketri, Bhainsa Tibba, MDC Sectors 4 & 6.
- Ward 2: MDC Sector 5, Sector 6, Majri village.
- Wards 3 & 4: Sectors 7 & 8 and Sectors 9 & 10 respectively.
- Ward 5: Sector 15.
- Ward 6: Sectors 16, 17, 18.
- Ward 7: Rajiv Colony (Reserved for BC).
- Ward 8: Indira Colony, Budhanpur.
- Ward 9: Sector 19, Industrial Area Phase-II.
- Ward 10: Abheypur, Sector 14, Industrial Area Phase-I.
- Ward 11: Sectors 12, 12A, Rally village.
- Ward 12: Sector 11, part of Sector 4, Haripur.
- Ward 13: Part of Sector 4, half of Sector 21, Devnagar.
- Ward 14: Maheshpur, Madrasi Colony, societies near Fatehpur (Sector 20), half of Sector 21.
- Ward 15: Kundli, half of Fatehpur, half of Sector 20.
- Ward 16: Chandi Kotla, Beed Ghaggar, Khadak Mangoli.
- Ward 17: Part of Khadag Mangoli, Chainki village, Sectors 23, 24, 25, Naggal Moginand, Nada (Reserved for BC).
- Ward 18: Bana, Madanpur, Sectors 26, 27, 28.
- Ward 19: Ramgarh, Billa, Jaswantgarh, Dabkouri, Mankya, Bhanu (Reserved for BC-A).
- Ward 20: Kot, Khangsera, Toka, Alipur, Sukh Darshanpur, Naggal, Jalauli, Khatauli (Reserved for BC-B).
