Three mayors in 36 days: Monitor appointed to Wyndham as councillors urge Singh to resign

Councillors in the City of Wyndham have unanimously called on the mayor to resign for having provided a character reference to a child sex offender, while the Allan government says it will appoint a monitor to restore stability to the fractious western suburbs council.

Wyndham Mayor Preet Singh – who was elected to the position on March 24 – stepped aside temporarily from his role on Tuesday afternoon as he faced a barrage of criticism for his decision in 2024 to give a character reference to a long-time friend.

The man, Kashyap Patel, was on trial for grooming and sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl in 2021. He was later convicted and jailed for nine months.

State Liberal aspirant Dinesh Gourisetty also withdrew from his candidacy for a parliamentary upper house seat on Monday, just a day after winning preselection for the Western Metropolitan region, after it emerged that he too had provided a character reference for Patel.

In his character reference for Patel, written on April 11, 2024, Singh said his friend of over a decade was “very upset about the charges, and I truly believe he is extremely regretful for what he has done”.

“Even though he has been charged, I would continue to trust Mr Kashyap Patel. He has always shown high integrity and is someone I could trust … I believe any behaviour he displayed that caused him to be charged with child grooming and sexual assault was a one-off event.”

Ten councillors for Wyndham released a statement on Wednesday afternoon calling on Singh to resign to “restore stability to the council and the Wyndham community”.

Community members held a protest against Singh outside the council’s offices in Werribee at 5pm on Wednesday.

Councillors said they had been working behind the scenes since Monday to secure Singh’s resignation.

“We can no longer remain silent. Supporting child sex offenders is never acceptable in any form,” the statement read.

“The Wyndham community deserves a mayor they can feel confidence in. In an election year, this is even more true as we ramp up our advocacy to secure funding for crucial projects.

“We firmly believe that following Monday’s revelations and the mayor’s refusal to resign, he is no longer fit to hold the office of mayor and will be unable to adequately perform the duties of the role.”

The state government intervened on Wednesday, announcing that it will appoint a monitor to restore good governance in Wyndham.

“I am deeply concerned by the ongoing instability in leadership at Wyndham City Council,” Local Government Minister Nick Staikos said.

“The ratepayers and residents deserve a council that is entirely focused on them. That’s why I will appoint a monitor to assist council to restore stability in the leadership and ensure good governance.”

Singh was elected mayor of Wyndham just over a week ago, following a deadlocked vote on March 23. The previous mayor, Josh Gilligan, lost the position in February after being found guilty of misconduct by an independent arbiter and suspended from council for one month.

The arbiter found that Gilligan breached council standards when he labelled a former councillor a “raging lunatic … spouting anti-government propaganda you usually see from the sovereign citizen movement” on social media.

Deputy mayor Jasmine Hill has been named acting mayor, making her the third mayor of Wyndham City in 36 days. Hill was suspended from council for misconduct in 2023 for alleged bullying of council staff, in a case brought against her by Gilligan.

On Wednesday, Singh issued a statement on Facebook about the character reference and calls for his resignation.

“Child sexual abuse is abhorrent, and I unequivocally condemn it,” he said.

“I understand the distress and concern this situation has caused in the community. The character reference I provided was given prior to my election, I recognise that, regardless of timing, this has raised legitimate questions about judgement. For that, I am deeply sorry.”

But Singh, who was the 2022 state Liberal candidate for Tarneit, has so far refused to quit.

The Age sought to contact Singh but did not receive an immediate reply.

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