NEW DELHI: AAP candidate Shelly Oberoi was re-elected mayor of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi unopposed on Wednesday after the BJP candidate, Shikha Rai, withdrew from the race minutes after the house convened, reports Vibha Sharma.The no-contest meant that AAP’s Chandni Mahal councillor Aaley Iqbal Mohammed, too, won a second term as deputy mayor unopposed. On projects being delayed as the standing committee has not been formed, Oberoi said the matter was in the HC. “We are waiting for the verdict. Meanwhile, we are trying our best to find an alternative solution for approving pending projects,” she said.Mayoral polls: AAP claims BJP backed out fearing cross-votingAfter AAP candidate Shelly Oberoi won unopposed in the mayor election, the party’s MCD in-charge, Durgesh Pathak, claimed that BJP had surrendered in front of AAP.”BJP didn’t have numbers and were fearing that their councillors would cross-vote, that’s why its candidates decided to withdraw their names at the last moment,” said Pathak. The MLA alleged that BJP had made several offers to AAP councillors, including a bribe of Rs 10 crore each and a meeting with a Union minister, to make them switch sides. “So much so that BJP even took the help of Delhi Police to buy our councillors,” claimed Pathak.The AAP leader in the House, Mukesh Goyal, urged BJP councillors not to play negative politics. “We were informed that many BJP councillors believing in democracy would vote in favour of AAP. To avoid such insult, BJP ran away from the fight. I hope BJP councillors would go on to work for the residents of Delhi,” he said.Pathak said that prior to the first mayoral election, BJP decided to break all constitutional norms and tried to use brute force to get a presiding officer of its choice. “Even this time while filing the candidature for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor on April 18, BJP claimed that both of its candidates would win. It put pressure on AAP councillors to cross-vote. But when nothing worked out, they anticipated their defeat. That’s why when CM Arvind Kejriwal chose the name of Mukesh Goyal as the presiding officer, there was no opposition. The BJP candidates also decided to surrender for the same reason,” he claimed.”Several ACPs and DCPs of Delhi Police were used to pressure AAP councillors and I say this with responsibility. I do not think that any other party in the history of India has stooped so low,” said Pathak.AAP senior leader and minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said BJP was facing severe humiliation after surrendering in the mayoral poll. “Either it should have decided not to contest the election or should have had the courage to fight it. When it is time for battle, it surrendered because it didn’t have the strength. Wednesday was a day of embarrassment for the entire BJP,” he said. Bharadwaj promised to make MCD corruption-free and improve the living conditions of Delhiites.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/bjp-opts-out-shelly-oberoi-gets-another-term-as-mcd-mayor/articleshow/99799172.cms
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