New Delhi: AAP will not contest both the mayoral and deputy mayoral elections in Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for the second consecutive year, with the polls scheduled on April 29.“We could have managed the numbers if serious efforts were made. Some councillors are unhappy with the current dispensation. But there is little point in getting dragged into horse-trading like other parties,” said Ankush Narang, AAP councillor and leader of the opposition.
The decision was taken after a party meeting on Wednesday. AAP has filed nomination for only one out of the three vacant seats in the standing committee and is expected to get elected. “Once again we have given BJP an open offer to make its candidate not only the mayor but also chairman of the standing committee, as the party will anyway get a majority in the committee too,” said Narang.AAP has fielded Shalimar Bagh councillor Jalaj Chaudhary for the committee. “Chaudhary has long been raising the problems of the area on priority and his experience will further strengthen the functioning of MCD,” Narang added.The elections for three members of the standing committee will also be held on April 29. On March 31, six BJP and three AAP representatives to the 18-member committee retired. The elections for six seats will be conducted in the respective zones from which the members had stepped down, while the remaining three will be elected by the House. Of the nine other members, BJP has five and AAP four.On Wednesday, BJP also held a detailed meeting under Delhi unit president Virendra Sachdeva. Three names were discussed for the mayor’s post — Jai Bhagwan Yadav (Begumpur), Inderjeet Sehrawat (Mahipalpur) and current mayor Raja Iqbal Singh (Mukherjee Nagar). The sitting leader of the House, Parvesh Wahi, is expected to be repeated. The nomination papers will have to be filed by Thursday.Congress will file nominations for both mayor and deputy mayor’s posts. Congress councillor Naziya Danish said councillors were elected through a democratic process and no question arose about not participating in the election.Out of the 250 seats in the House, BJP represents 123 and AAP 100. The remaining strength includes 15 councillors of Indraprastha Vikas Party, formed after splitting from AAP; nine Congress councillors; one member from Forward Bloc and one Independent councillor; while one seat is vacant.In the mayoral and deputy mayoral elections, councillors are joined by MPs and MLAs as voters. By that calculation, BJP commands 141 votes — comprising 123 councillors, seven Lok Sabha MPs and 11 MLAs. AAP has 106 votes — 100 councillors, three Rajya Sabha MPs and three MLAs.Last year, too, AAP had stayed away from the mayoral contest, paving the way for BJP to secure an unopposed victory in the fourth term of this House. In the first three terms after the 2022 civic polls, including the tenures reserved for women and scheduled caste — AAP had held both the mayor and deputy mayor posts. In the fourth term, BJP’s Singh won the mayoral election, helping the party reclaim control of the civic body after a two-year gap.AAP had originally won 134 of the 250 seats in the 2022 elections, but its tally has since fallen to 100 following defections and resignations.The mayoral post follows a rotational five-term system — first reserved for women, second general, third reserved category and the final two open to the general category. With the last MCD elections held in Dec 2022, this House could get a sixth mayor before the current five-year term ends.
