Fresh elections for the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Delhi’s Municipal Corporation (MCD) are set to take place on April 26, as announced by Urban Development Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj.
The incumbent Mayor, Shelly Oberoi, will propose the date for the elections, following which the MCD commissioner will send a recommendation to the Lieutenant-Governor’s office through the Delhi government. Once a presiding officer, who is not a candidate for the mayoral polls, is appointed, the elections will be held.
Last year’s MCD polls were delayed, causing the term of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor to last only a few months. The ruling Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Shelly Oberoi and Aaley Mohammad Iqbal won the two posts, respectively, after three failed attempts, amidst chaos and ruckus in the House.
As per the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957, the mayoral post rotates between a woman candidate, a general candidate, candidates from scheduled castes, and a general candidate for the fourth and fifth years. Oberoi won the election with 150 votes against the BJP’s Rekha Gupta, while Aale Mohammad defeated the BJP candidate Kamal Bagri by a margin of 31 votes to become the deputy mayor.
AAP sources have stated that both Oberoi and Aale Mohammad will be repeated as candidates since they had a very short tenure after being elected on February 22. With the tenure of the House having ended on March 31, Oberoi will continue to discharge her duties until the elections are held.