Process initiated for next MCD mayor elections

Shelly Oberoi will now decide the next date to hold the elections, and L-G will also give his final approval over appointment of presiding officer

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has initiated the process to elect a new mayor, after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Shelly Oberoi completed her 38-day tenure at the post, officials aware of the development said on Monday.

AAP leader Shelly Oberoi has completed her 38-day tenure. (HT PHOTO)

Oberoi had an unusually truncated tenure as the MCD annual cycle starts from April 1. This cycle was impacted last year due to the unification of the three erstwhile municipal corporations and the delimitation of wards, delaying the elections to the civic body from April to December. After several failed attempts, marred by violence in the House, Oberoi was elected mayor on February 22, defeating BJP’s Rekha Gupta by 34 votes. AAP candidate Aaley Mohammad Iqbal won the deputy mayor’s post by raking in 147 votes against BJP’s Kamal Bagdi’s haul of 116 votes.

A senior MCD official said Oberoi will now decide the next date to hold the elections, and once the mayor’s office gives its approval to the date, the file will be sent to the lieutenant governor’s secretariat office for final ratification. LG VK Saxena will also give his final approval for the appointment of the presiding officer to hold the elections.

Unlike the first MCD term, the position of mayor is now open for general category councillors in the second cycle. However, parties can repeat the same candidate as in the first term.

Other crucial posts are also hanging in the balance. The elections to the standing committee — an 18-member body that controls the purse strings of MCD — have not been completed yet.

A second MCD official said that unlike the first inaugural meeting of the MCD, the dates for the mayoral election in the second year are finalised by the outgoing mayor. “The process has been initiated by the municipal secretariat and Oberoi is now likely to suggest the possible dates to hold elections soon. The file will then be moved to the LG secretariat, where the LG will appoint a presiding officer to hold the inaugural House of the second year. Usually, the outgoing mayor is the presiding officer for the election of the next cycle,” the official said.

The AAP did not respond to requests for comment.

Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said, “If AAP does not give up its stubbornness, municipal services may break down.”

Former North MCD chief law officer Anil Gupta said the election process needs to be completed before April 30. “Usually the outgoing mayor presides over the election meeting, but if the current mayor decides to contest the elections for the next year, she will not be considered the presiding officer,” he said.