Ruckus in MCD house again as BJP demands Delhi mayoral polls
Several important proposals were passed without discussion, including a ₹1,144-crore project to replace LED streetlights in south Delhi
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) house of councillors witnessed scenes of pandemonium on Monday, as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members demanded that the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) announce the long-overdue mayoral elections.
Amid the ruckus, several important proposals were passed without discussion, including a ₹1,144-crore project to replace LED streetlights in south Delhi.
According to provisions of the Delhi Municipal Corporation (DMC) Act, the mayor’s post in the third election cycle of a house has been reserved for a Scheduled Caste candidate. However, the election process has been pending since at least April — then chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was jailed before he could give his assent for the exercise, and though he has been since been released and has stepped down as CM, the polls have been delayed till at least November, with the AAP citing the festive season.
On Monday, the house meeting started late, with BJP members holding placards to criticise mayor Shelley Oberoi’s upcoming official trip to Brazil, and alleging that the tenure of a “Dalit mayor” was cut short by the current dispensation.
Oberoi appealed to the opposition benches to allow the house to be run, promising that elections will be held in the next meeting. However, the ruckus continued, and the mayor asked leader of the house Mukesh Goyal to take up the agenda items.
The proceedings thereafter lasted barely 3-4 minutes, and Oberoi announced an adjournment till the next meeting, on a yet-to-be-decided date.
Later, leader of the opposition and former mayor Raja Iqbal Singh said the BJP has demanded that the mayor and the AAP hold the mayoral election without delay. “If the elections are not announced soon, the BJP will stage a protest and lock the mayor’s office,” he said.
In response, the AAP in a statement accused the BJP of preventing “any fruitful discussion” in the house.
“The LoP is called upon to have the councillors of the BJP indulge in meaningful discussions in the house for betterment of citizens of Delhi & to stop disrupting the house for theatrics & to make headlines in the media,” the statement said.
Proposal to rename roads cleared
The house on Monday accorded its final nod to a proposal to rename a road in Vasant Vihar as Jamaica Marg. The road was earlier known as B-9 Lane.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 1 had announced that the road in front of the Jamaica high commission has been named Jamaica Marg to highlight the strong India-Jamaica ties.
MCD also passed a proposal to name the main road from the Bhalaswa flyover to ITI Road, Jahangirpuri, and Harijan Colony as the Late Gokul Chand Marg, to honour a social worker from the area.