BJP Councillor Withdraws Contempt Plea Against Delhi Mayor

BJP councillor Raja Iqbal Singh has withdrawn his contempt plea against Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi concerning the delayed election for the MCD's standing committee seat. The Supreme Court suggested approaching the Delhi High Court. Singh alleged disobedience of an August 5 order to conduct the election promptly.

BJP councillor Raja Iqbal Singh on Tuesday withdrew his contempt plea against Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi regarding the election to fill a vacancy in the MCD's standing committee. This decision followed a suggestion by the Supreme Court to approach the Delhi High Court as the more suitable forum.

Senior advocate Sonia Mathur, representing Singh, consented to the suggestion from the bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, leading to the withdrawal of the plea. Consequently, the matter was dismissed as withdrawn.

In his plea, Singh argued that there was a 'wilful and deliberate disobedience' by the mayor to the apex court's August 5 order, which called for elections to fill the vacant standing committee post within a month. The plea accused Mayor Shelly Oberoi of arbitrarily postponing the election to October 5, 2024. Despite intervention by Lieutenant-Governor V K Saxena, who insisted on holding the election by September 26, the mayor deferred this as well.

The BJP subsequently won the last vacant seat of the MCD's 18-member standing committee unopposed, as AAP councillors abstained from voting. On August 5, the Supreme Court affirmed the Lieutenant Governor's authority to nominate aldermen to the MCD without the council of ministers' advice, rejecting the Delhi government's challenge to this power.

(With inputs from agencies.)