BJP gains majority in MCD panel as AAP, Cong boycott election
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured the last vacant seat of the 18-member Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) Standing Committee unopposed on Friday. The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress councillors boycotted the election, citing procedural violations and declaring the poll “unconstitutional.” BJP’s candidate, Sunder Singh, received all 115 votes from the party’s councillors, while AAP’s candidate, Nirmala Kumari, received no votes as her party abstained from participating.
With this result, the BJP now holds 10 seats in the influential panel, giving it a majority over the ruling AAP, which holds eight seats. Despite being the Opposition party in the 250-member MCD House, where AAP has 128 councillors to the BJP’s 115, the Standing Committee’s structure now gives the BJP an upper hand in approving key administrative and financial decisions. As the highest decision-making body, its members have considerable authority over the allocation of funds and approval of projects, particularly those exceeding Rs 5 crore. The committee’s recommendations are essential for moving proposals to the MCD House for final approval.
The election was conducted amidst intense political tension. Initially scheduled for September 26, Mayor Shelly Oberoi had postponed the election, citing disruptions during a session over the frisking of councillors, and declared that the election would take place on October 5. However, L-G Saxena intervened, instructing MCD Commissioner Ashwani Kumar to conduct the election on Friday.
Mayor Shelly Oberoi responded to the L-G’s directive, calling it a violation of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act and democratic principles. In a letter to Commissioner Ashwani Kumar, she declared the L-G’s order “unconstitutional.” “This election is a mockery of democracy,” Oberoi stated. “It was announced late at night, giving many councillors no time to return to Delhi or participate in the voting process.”
Oberoi added that her earlier adjournment of the House session until October 5 was legally binding and accused the BJP of rushing the election to consolidate control over the Standing Committee. AAP’s senior leader, Manish Sisodia, joined Mayor Oberoi in calling the election “illegal.” Sisodia stated: “The BJP is attempting to repeat what it did in the Chandigarh mayoral poll, where it was caught red-handed manipulating the process.”
Former Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal accused the BJP of “stealing the mandate” in the MCD. “The BJP has wrongly overpowered the Municipal Corporation of Delhi by manipulating the system and undermining democratic procedures,” Kejriwal said in a statement after the election.
The contempt petition filed by Leader of the Opposition Sardar Raja Iqbal Singh accused the Mayor of defying the Supreme Court’s order without any constitutionally valid reason and called for immediate judicial intervention. The Mayor’s postponement of the Standing Committee election meeting is allegedly in violation of the Supreme Court’s order dated August 5, 2024. The Supreme Court had previously directed the immediate election of a member to fill the vacant Standing Committee seat following BJP councillor Kamaljeet Sehrawat’s election as a Member of Parliament. The petition is expected to be taken up by the Supreme Court on Monday.
With AAP and Congress councillors boycotting the election, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva hailed the victory as a safeguard for democracy, accusing AAP of deliberately avoiding the election to cover up internal divisions. “If the Aam Aadmi Party had participated, it would have been clear that they had lost their majority in the corporation,” Sachdeva said. He also suggested that AAP’s decision to boycott the election was a strategic move to avoid revealing a loss of support within the MCD.
