NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured the final vacant position on the Municipal Corporation of Delhi’s 18-member Standing Committee without opposition on Friday, as councillors from the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress abstained from the election process.
Sunder Singh, the BJP’s nominee, received all 115 votes from the party’s councillors, while Nirmala Kumari, the AAP’s candidate, did not garner any support.
The standing committee holds the highest decision-making authority within the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
Following this election outcome, the BJP has increased its representation in the panel to 10 members, while the ruling AAP now holds only eight seats.
This marked the first instance where the election took place without the involvement of AAP and Congress councillors.
The vacancy arose after BJP councillor Kamaljeet Sehrawat was elected to the Lok Sabha, representing the West Delhi constituency.
After BJP won the seat in MCD election, AAP called it ‘illegal and unconstitutional.’ Delhi’s former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the BJP people had made MCD a den of loot.
“Everyone has seen their misdeeds during the mayoral elections in Chandigarh. Now they want to do the same in MCD. The mayor will conduct the election of the standing committee members, she asked for the election to be held on October 5. But LG sahab, who is abroad, orders the election to be held at night,” he said.
Delhi CM Atishi called it illegal and unconstitutional and said, “As per the MCD Act, only the Mayor has the power to convene the House and to be Presiding Officer. If an Addl Commisioner replaces the Mayor in the Corporation today, tmrw BJP might have the Home Secy replace the Speaker in the Lok Sabha!”
Mayor Shelly Oberoi declared the result ‘Null and Void’ and said that the election results of Standing committee 6th member declared by MCD commissioner is illegal and unconstitutional.