The AAP’s Mahesh Khichi was elected as the brand new Mayor of Delhi on Thursday, marking a big victory for the ruling social gathering within the Capital forward of the Meeting polls due early subsequent yr.
The elections have been held after a delay of almost eight months with this being the third try on the mayoral polls this yr. Whereas each the mayoral and deputy mayoral posts have been reserved for candidates from the Scheduled Caste class this time, attributable to a number of delays within the election course of, their phrases will solely final 4 months.
Khichi (45), a first-time councillor from Dev Nagar, defeated BJP’s Shakurpur councillor Kishan Lal by solely three votes, receiving 133 votes to the latter’s 130. Two votes have been declared invalid – one every from AAP and BJP. A complete of 256 votes have been solid for the Mayor’s put up.
Following its defeat within the mayoral ballot contest, the BJP withdrew its candidate, Sadatpur councillor Neeta Bisht, from the race for deputy mayor, clearing the best way for the AAP’s Ravinder Bhardwaj (32), councillor from Aman Vihar, to safe the place unopposed.
The proceedings took an surprising flip when Congress leaders staged a walkout from the Home. It boycotted the voting whereas calling for a full time period for the Mayor. “We wish the Dalit mayor to get a full tenure as an alternative of simply 4 months,” a celebration councillor stated.
The seven Congress councillors didn’t take part within the voting and its councillor from Mustafabad, Sabila Begum, resigned from the social gathering and voted for the AAP.
In her resignation letter, she criticised the Congress for boycotting the elections. Begum stated that she couldn’t “help the BJP by abstaining from the vote”. Notably, this was not her first resignation; she had left the Congress in December 2022 as nicely, shortly after being elected as a councillor.
The remainder of the proceedings unfolded with out disruptions.
After his victory was introduced, Khichi stated, “I want to thank all councillors for supporting me. I’m grateful to our former chief minister (Arvind Kejriwal) and the social gathering
management for making a much less identified councillor like me the Mayor of Delhi. I guarantee everybody that we are going to work collectively for the event of Delhi.”
Khichi, a 1999-batch BCom passout from the Motilal Nehru Faculty, is a monetary advisor by occupation.
In response to the Delhi Municipal Company Act, the MCD should elect a brand new mayor and deputy mayor annually in April. Nonetheless, two key hurdles contributed to delay in holding the polls – the imposition of the mannequin code of conduct (MCC) for the Lok Sabha polls and non-appointment of a presiding officer by Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) V Ok Saxena.
Though the Election Fee had permitted the polls to proceed regardless of MCC being in pressure, the elections have been stalled when the L-G refused to nominate a presiding officer, citing the absence of suggestions from then chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, who was in jail on the time.
A second try was made final month when outgoing mayor Shelly Oberoi acquired a request from the municipal secretary to set a ballot date in October. The request languished in her workplace for every week earlier than Oberoi introduced that the elections can be postponed to November, citing upcoming Diwali and the probability of councillors being unavailable.
