3 AAP councilors join BJP ahead of MCD mayoral poll
What's the story
In a major political development, three Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councilors switched sides to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) mayoral election.
The councilors, Anita Basoya from Andrews Ganj, Nikhil Chaprana from Hari Nagar, and Dharamvir from R K Puram, defected to the BJP.
The move is viewed as a shot in the arm for the BJP's chances in the upcoming mayoral poll slated for April.
Press conference
Delhi BJP chief announces defections, predicts 'triple engine' government
Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva announced the defections during a press conference.
He said Delhi would soon have a "triple engine" government at the Centre, assembly, and municipal levels.
Sachdeva said this alignment would help develop Delhi as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision for a 'Viksit Bharat.'
He also said the councilors joined the BJP to help make Delhi a clean and beautiful city.
Election aftermath
BJP's victory in Delhi assembly elections precedes defections
The recent defections come after BJP's decisive victory in the Delhi assembly elections where it won 48 out of 70 seats. AAP had previously held power for a decade but could manage only 22 seats this time.
Meanwhile, Congress could not win even a single seat.
In the last mayoral election held in November 2024, AAP had narrowly won by three votes.
Political shift
BJP gains numerical advantage over AAP in MCD
With these new additions, the BJP now has a numerical edge over AAP in the MCD.
The party will have 10 MLAs nominated to the MCD as opposed to AAP's four nominations.
Seven Lok Sabha MPs of BJP and three Rajya Sabha MPs of AAP are also eligible voters in the mayoral election.
Budget allocation
MCD presents ₹17,000 crore budget for next financial year
Notably, the MCD had recently presented a ₹17,000 crore budget for the next financial year.
The budget focuses on sanitation with an allocation of ₹4,907.11 crore, in addition to infrastructure development, education, and waste management.
In other recent election developments, eight BJP councilors and three AAP councilors were elected to the assembly on February 5.