Delhi mayor election: Congress councilor resigns, votes for AAP
The Delhi mayoral election on Thursday was mired in chaos over the five-month tenure of the next mayor. The Congress party boycotted the election, demanding a full-term for the new Dalit mayor. The election, which is usually held in April, was postponed amid a tussle between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Amid the chaos, Congress Councillor Sabila Begum from Mustafabad Ward 243 resigned from the party and chose to vote for the AAP.
Congress councilor resigns, criticizes party's election boycott
In her resignation letter, she slammed the Congress's decision to walk out, saying it would benefit the BJP. "A few days ago, the election of a member of the standing committee was to be held. In that too, the Congress councillors were given the order to walk out, the result of which was that the BJP candidate won." "In the last....election also we...walked out..., due to which we had to face anger of our people," she wrote, as per NDTV.
Mayoral election delayed due to procedural disputes
The AAP had earlier boycotted the election in September after councilors were frisked. Further delays were due to procedural disputes, including the appointment of a presiding officer by Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena. The AAP has fielded Mahesh Khichi from Devnagar for Mayor against BJP's Kishan Lal. For Deputy Mayor, AAP's Ravinder Bharadwaj is contesting against BJP's Nita Bisht. This is the third mayoral election since AAP ended BJP's 15-year control of the civic body in December 2022.
Tensions over Satya Sharma's appointment
Ahead of the elections, the BJP and AAP also clashed after Satya Sharma was appointment as presiding officer. The AAP raised concerns of fairness and requested LG Saxena to appoint either the incumbent mayor or senior-most councilor as presiding officer. They warned against BJP's possible manipulation. Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor defended Sharma's appointment and accused the AAP of questioning statutory appointments. He hinted that the AAP could attempt to delay electing a scheduled caste mayor again.
