Delhi Mayor Polls Today Weeks After Fight Between AAP, BJP. Here's How It Ended Last Time

Delhi Mayor Election: Both BJP and AAP had created ruckus during the previous MCD session and the election was postponed.

Ruckus between AAP and BJP during the previous session of the MCD ( Image Source :PTI )

New Delhi: The sitting of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi will be convened on Tuesday to elect the city mayor after it failed to do so in its last sitting due to the chaos between the Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janta Party. 

The swearing-in ceremony of the elected councillors will also be done on Tuesday and hopefully, Delhi will have its first sole mayor in a decade.

Delhi LG Vinay Kumar Saxena last week approved the convening of the meeting of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on 24th January for the oath of affirmation to elected councillors, the election of Mayor and Deputy Mayor and six members to the Standing Committee.

The previous sitting on January 6 and days after it was hit by massive protests by both AAP and BJP holding each other responsible for the ruckus that occurred in the MCD house. 

The LG-nominated members and 10 aldermen will take oath first after the House convenes. AAP earlier opposed the decision of the Presiding officer to call nominated members for oath-taking first instead of elected councillors. 

Here’s What Happened In Previous Session 

Delhi LG Vinay Kumar Saxena nominated BJP's Satya Sharma as the Presiding officer of the mayoral elections. This irked AAP which had nominated Mukesh Goyal for the post and condemned LG's order. 

AAP said that senior most member is nominated as pro tem speaker but "BJP is hellbent on destroying all democratic traditions and institutions". After the session convened, BJP’s Satya Sharma took oath as the pro tem speaker to conduct the voting for the mayor elections and the swearing-in of the councillors. 

She first called nominated councillors for oath taking which upset the Aam Aadmi Party. AAP argued that traditionally, elected members are called first for swearing-in. It alleged that the process is not constitutional at all. 

This created huge chaos including shouting, sloganeering, and scuffling between the members of the BJP and AAP. BJP MP Manoj Tiwari reacted to the chaos and said, "Why the AAP is scared...AAP has been defeated morally...does it think that its councillors won't be supporting their party?" 

AAP councilor Praveen Kumar said, "BJP is doing hooliganism. Swearing-in of the nominated councillors was being held first. A ruckus broke out when we objected to it and asked that the swearing-in of elected councillors should be held first. They (BJP) threw a moment." 

BJP MP and Union Minister Meenakashi Lekhi said, "All the ruckus is started by AAP leaders. This is because they are unaware of the rules. When they are in majority, why are they afraid? AAP MPs do the same in Rajya Sabha as well." 

Reacting to the entire incident, Presiding Officer Satya Sharma said, "I appealed for the normal proceedings but they want to create a ruckus & climbed the desk. If they sit peacefully, we are ready for the swearing-in of everybody." 

When the house could not manage the proceedings, pro tem Speaker Satya Sharma adjourned the house and postponed the mayor elections as well as the swearing-in of elected councillors. She said that four nominated councillors took oaths that will remain valid and the rest of the proceedings will take place on the next sitting of the MCD house.