The commissioner accused the three councilors of assault and beating him
Amid the ongoing political crisis in Jaipur, Rajasthan, the Gehlot government on Tuesday sacked BJP mayor Soumya Gurjar. The matter was taken up in the Supreme Court on September 23 and the state government was asked to take action two days later.
Since Monday was a holiday, the state government prepared a proposal to dismiss the mayor and sent it to Urban Development Minister Shanti Dhariwal on Tuesday. With the minister’s approval, the autonomous government department issued an order dismissing the mayor from office and disqualifying him from contesting elections for the next six years.
It may be mentioned that in June 2021, a dispute arose in a meeting between Mayor Soumya Gurjar, the then Commissioner Yagnyamitra Singh Dev and other councilors at the Jaipur Municipal Corporation Greater Headquarters. There was an altercation between the councilors and the mayor along with the commissioner. The commissioner left the meeting midway.
But he was stopped at the gate by councillors, after which the controversy escalated. The commissioner gave a written complaint to the government, accusing the three councilors of assault and beating him and registered a case at the Jyoti Nagar police station.
On 5 June, the government intervened in the matter and handed over the investigation of the complaint against Mayor Soumya Gurjar and Councilors Paras Jain, Ajay Singh, Shankar Sharma to the Regional Director of the Directorate of Autonomous Government. In an inquiry report on 6 June, the government found the four guilty and suspended all (the mayor and three councillors) from office. On the same day, the government started a judicial inquiry against all of them.
The same month, the state government issued an order and appointed Councilor Sheel Dhabai as acting mayor. Mayor Gurjar challenged the suspension in the High Court, but on June 28, the High Court refused to stay the suspension order.
In July, Soumya Gurjar filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the judicial inquiry and suspension order. On 1 February 2022, the Supreme Court stayed the suspension order, after which Soumya Gurjar resumed the mayor’s chair on 2 February.
The judicial inquiry report against Soumya and three other councilors was released on August 11, in which all were found guilty. On August 22, the government canceled the membership of three BJP councillors. He has also been removed by the government based on this judicial inquiry.
After this, the government filed a petition in the Supreme Court and submitted a judicial inquiry report and sought an early hearing of the matter. The Supreme Court on September 23 allowed the government to proceed.