Mayoral elections: LG nominates 10 aldermen, AAP calls process ‘illegal’

Two days ahead of the Mayoral elections and the first meeting of the newly elected House of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), lieutenant governor VK Saxena on Wednesday nominated 10 people to the corporation’s legislative body, often referred to as Aldermen

Two days ahead of the Mayoral elections and the first meeting of the newly elected House of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), lieutenant governor VK Saxena on Wednesday nominated 10 people to the corporation’s legislative body, often referred to as Aldermen.

Officials aware of the matter said that first a notification carrying the names of the 10 nominees was issued by Delhi lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena’s office. However, a modified list was issued later revising two names (ANI)

Officials aware of the matter said that first a notification carrying the names of the 10 nominees was issued by the LG office. However, a modified list was issued later revising two names.

The nomination of the Aldermen marks one of the final steps in the constitution of the MCD House. The election of the new councillors has been completed and the LG has already nominated 14 Delhi MLAs to the MCD. On January 6, the newly elected councillors will be administered oath of office, and later the House will elect the Mayor, deputy mayor and members of the standing committee. Besides the 250 councillors, the nominated MLAs and 10 Delhi MPs (7 Lok Sabha and 3 Rajya Sabha) will form the electoral college for these elections. The Aldermen, however, do not have voting rights in the House.

According to the final notification, the LG nominated Amitabh Kundoo, deputy director local body reads. The original list of ten members included Vinod Kumar, Laxman Arya, Mukesh Mann, Suneet Chauhan, Raj Kumar Bhatia, Mohan Goel, Sanjay Tyagi, Rajpal Rana, Manoj Kumar, Rohtash Kumar.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) termed the nominations illegal, saying that the Delhi government has been completely bypassed by the LG office.

Speaking at a press conference, AAP MLA Atishi said, “The LG has nominated 10 BJP members as Aldermen. The list of members to be nominated as Aldermen used to be sent by Delhi government through its urban development department. But this time, the file of the nominated members was sent directly to the LG, bypassing the state government, and an illegal, unconstitutional notification has been issued today.”

The LG office, however, rejected the AAP’s charges. An official in the LG office said, “The DMC Act empowers LG to nominate the Aldermen. Moreover, after the 2022 amendment, the word ‘government’ in the DMC Act has been replaced with ‘central government’. In any case, the suggestion from the state government or consulting them on this matter in not binding on LG. If they think the step is illegal and unconstitutional then why don’t they approach courts instead of making frivolous statements.”

Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said the AAP has no respect for constitutional provisions. “It is strange that Atishi is saying that the LG has bypassed the legal process in appointing 10 Aldermen. According to the amended DMC Act, LG is completely empowered to nominate Aldermen. The AAP should stop playing the victim card,” Kapoor said.