NEW DELHI: While the election for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor concluded smoothly on Wednesday, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi saw a brawl breaking out soon after. The councillors even threw bottles and slippers at each other, in the process stalling the elections for the six Standing Committee members till 11.45pm, when the ninth adjournment of the day was announced.The acrimonious proceedings during the election of the Standing Committee members led to a series of adjournments – at 6.34pm, 7.57pm, 8.10pm, 8:50pm, 10pm, 10.30pm, 11.02pm, 11:20pm and then for one hour at 11:40pm.The uproar began when newly elected mayor Shelly Oberoi declared that mobile phones would be allowed in the polling booth. There was immediate protest from the BJP members, who rushed to the well of the House and said it was against the norms to allow mobile phones in this manner. Oberoi’s view that disallowing phones would amount to hurting the dignity of members found no takers.With the election of the mayor and deputy mayor completed around 4.20pm, the House took a break and reconvened at 6.10pm. Over the next hour, BJP and AAP councillors exchanged words over the mayor allowing mobile phones inside the voting booth. The BJP members alleged that the AAP councillors were taking photos of the ballot papers to ensure there was no cross voting. “Earlier, there were no objections when Mukesh Goel, leader of the House, and his party demanded that mobile phones and pens not be permitted in the booth. But now the mayor has allowed mobile phones, and it is evident AAP councillors are clicking photos of their ballot papers,” claimed BJP councillor Kamaljeet Sehrawat.These allegations were made in the backdrop of AAP having secured only 150 votes in the mayoral contest and 147 in the deputy mayor’s election despite claiming to have 151 votes in the House.Shikha Rai, BJP councillor and former leader of the House in the erstwhile south corporation, argued that phones were not allowed into voting booths in any other elections to maintain secrecy. “We demand that the mayor hold fresh elections for the standing committee members,” said Rai. Around 7:30 pm when Oberoi redirected that mobile phones would not be permitted and that the election of the Standing Committee would be completed on the day itself, the agitated BJP councillors began demanding the recasting of the 47 votes already polled by then.The mayor responded to this by pointing out that 300 ballot papers had been prepared, of which 55 had already been distributed so there weren’t enough left for a new poll. She elaborated, “Of the 55 ballot papers distributed, 50 were dropped in the ballot box. The rest weren’t returned despite our asking for them back. Since we are left with just 245 fresh ballot papers, having a vote all over again is not possible,” said Oberoi. She insisted that the election would be completed on Wednesday itself in accordance with the Supreme Court’s directions.When the House resumed for the sixth time at 10.30pm, there was jostling among the councillors as the BJP members alleged that their microphones had been switched off. Some of them even reached the dais and tried to snatch the mayor’s mic. They raised slogans calling the mayor a “cheater”. Rai claimed that their mics were switched off intentionally to prevent them from raising their objections.There was an adjournment for the seventh time after a brawl broke out between the councillors. They started hitting each other with slippers and bottles, and there were allegations that BJP councillor Arjun Marwah was attacked by his rivals. The House met again to be adjourned around 11.20pm. At 11.40pm, the House was adjourned for an hour.Oberoi criticised the BJP members saying, “BJP councillors tried to attack me while I was conducting the Standing Committee elections as per the Supreme Court’s orders. That they are ready to attack a woman is the extent to which BJP can indulge in hooliganism,” she said.Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor retorted, “Soon after the Supreme Court directive, I had asked chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to reassure that AAP would allow the Standing Committee elections to take place after the mayor’s election. But clearly, they do not want that. First AAP hindered the election by allowing the use of phones in the voting booth and later by having its members throw bottles from the visitors’ gallery. If need be, BJP will go to the court.”The mayor chairs the proceedings of the deliberative wing, whose first challenge will be to clear the remaining budget proposals for the 2023-24 financial year. In the absence of a constituted House, MCD special officer Ashwini Kumar approved the schedule of taxes on February 15, but the House can still revise the expenditures and remaining budget provisions till March 31, 2023.The mayor, who is head of the deliberative wing, functions like a legislature’s speaker. The post comes with discretionary powers on funds and other facilities. The mayor can also grant anticipatory approvals to project proposals.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/chaos-again-in-mcd-house-as-slippers-bottles-fly-during-standing-panel-polls/articleshow/98163771.cms
