3 min readChandigarhUpdated: May 30, 2026 09:11 AM IST
Discontent appears to be brewing within the BJP Chandigarh over the functioning of its Mayor Saurabh Joshi, with the party’s state in-charge Atul Garg reportedly expressing displeasure after repeated complaints from councillors that the Mayor was not taking calls or responding to party men.
Sources said the matter escalated after Garg, who is also an MP from Ghaziabad, himself initially failed to get through to the Mayor on one occasion while he was here in Chandigarh. Sources in the party further said several BJP councillors had approached Garg alleging that Joshi had become inaccessible and that even routine civic and ward-related matters were not being addressed.
The complaints reportedly snowballed after multiple councillors conveyed that their works and recommendations were pending despite repeated follow-ups.
Sources added that after the displeasure expressed by Garg, Joshi, however, told him that sometimes he is in the “middle of a meeting” due to which he is unable to respond to councillors’ issues.
While speaking to The Indian Express, Garg said, “usually some people get through, some people say they can’t contact him (Joshi). I also contacted later with a different number and he took the call”.
“I just said in the meeting that everyone should be available for each other. For the grievances they have, we have made a seven-member committee, which will assist in the functioning of the Municipal Corporation,” Garg added.
The MP even chaired a meeting of all the councilors and Mayor, however, Joshi told The Indian Express that there was not a “discussion” on his inaccessibility.
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Sources said that even the party’s own Chandigarh president Jatinder Malhotra couldn’t get through the Mayor.
“Most of us conveyed to the leadership that we elected representatives were finding it difficult to coordinate with the Mayor’s office and that the growing communication gap was affecting both governance and internal party coordination. Moreover the state in-charge expressed concern that the perception of inaccessibility could politically hurt the party at the grassroots level as civic polls were scheduled to be held this year,” a senior councillor of the BJP said.
The discontent also comes amid the recent controversy involving the Lions company, where the BJP and the Congress councillors were seen sharing the same platform over concerns linked to the sanitation system in the city.
“The incharge was convinced that he (Mayor) may not have called a meeting but incidentally one after the other, the councillors gathered and expressed their discontent over the sanitation issue,” the senior councillor added.
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The development had triggered murmurs within BJP circles, with some leaders privately questioning the political messaging emerging from the episode.
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