Three women in running for Gandhinagar mayor
Updated: May 16th, 2024
Who will be Gandhinagar’s next mayor? This seems to be the question on everyone’s minds in the state capital, as the general assembly of the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation prepares to meet.
Hitesh Makwana and Premsingh Gol have been serving as mayor and his deputy since October 2021. With their 30-month terms ending in May 2024, rumours are rife that the next mayor could be Ward 1’s Anjanaben Mehta, or Ward 8’s Chayaben Trivedi, or Shailaben Trivedi of Ward 9.
When Makwana took office, the mayoral seat was reserved for a member of the Scheduled Castes for a 2.5 year term. Thereafter, it is meant to pass to a woman.
Whoever takes the mayoral chair, Ward 3 councillor and former leader of the opposition in the GMC Ankit Barot is the key favourite to be her second in command.
Barot was one of two Congress councillors—along with Gajendrasinh Vaghela—who jumped ship from the Congress to the Bharatiya Janata Party just before the Lok Sabha elections, leaving Tushar Parikh of the Aam Aadmi Party the sole member of the opposition.
When it meets, the general assembly will also select the chairman of the standing committee and the leader of the ruling party.
GMC was formed in 2011. by combining sectors 1 through 30 and seven adjoining villages. Nineteen villages were included later.
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