Dev to be key issue as 5 wards go to by-polls today
New Delhi: The fight for development has gathered pace in the national Capital with the MCD by-elections to be held today as both the leading contenders — the Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party have based their respective campaigns on bringing development.
However, as the AAP chose to focus on alleged scams and purported corruption in the civic body administrations and asserted that people should vote for them to see real development free of graft, the BJP has claimed the AAP is the one slowing development.
Five municipal wards are going into polls- Rohini C and Shalimar Bagh North of North Delhi Municipal Corporation (North DMC) and Trilokpuri, Kalyanpuri and Chauhan Bangar of East Delhi Municipal Corporation.
The AAP is using its last six years' of work providing 24x7 free electricity, improving schools and hospitals, and repairing roads.
The BJP has been ruling three Municipal Corporations in Delhi since 2012.
Significantly, with the AAP throwing in the heavyweights during campaigning for these five seats, the Sunday elections, for which results will be announced on March 3, could be a preview of the upcoming MCD elections next year.
Four of these five wards fell vacant after sitting councillors contested assembly polls on AAP ticket in 2020 and became MLAs. The Shalimar Bagh ward fell vacant after the death of Renu Jaju who had won the seat on a BJP ticket in 2017.
Spread as separate pockets, the ward has a mixed population including both posh colonies and slum and Jhuggi Jhompri clusters, but with common issues of development.
The main idea that will rule the roost in the by-election is political corruption in the MCDs, be it in the case of sanitation or financial management. The Delhi Assembly had recently passed a resolution demanding a CBI inquiry into the alleged Rs 2,500 crore scam in the municipal corporation. This inquiry and charges allegedly exposed the corruption that has had the MCD in its grip.
These financial incapacities of the MCD have become an institutional crisis, which both AAP and BJP are using for their political benefit to consolidate their electoral base in the upcoming elections.
Meanwhile, Delhi Police Commissioner S N Shrivastava on Saturday reviewed the law and order situation in the national Capital and the security arrangements ahead of the by-elections in the five municipal wards here.
The crime review meeting was also attended by senior police officers of the force.
The Police chief directed officers to take strict measures to curb incidents where of firearms are being used and also took stock of the status of vaccination among police personnel in different districts and units.
Meanwhile, the State Election Commission issued a show-cause notice to Principal Secretary (Revenue) Sanjeev Khirwar and two officers of the Directorate of Information and Publicity (DIP) seeking their reply on an advertisement on 20 per cent reduction in circle rates in the city.
Voting for the municipal bypolls will be held in the five wards from 7.30 am to 5.30 pm on Sunday. The results will be announced on March 3, election officials said.
