MCD Commissioner Orders Standing Committee Election Amid Turmoil

MCD Commissioner Ashwani Kumar has ordered the election for the Standing Committee member on September 27. The election was previously postponed due to a protest by AAP councillors. Lt Governor V K Saxena played a key role in issuing directives for the election amid controversy.

In a decisive move, MCD Commissioner Ashwani Kumar directed the election for the Standing Committee member to be held on September 27 at 1 pm. This comes after the initial polls were postponed owing to protests by AAP councillors.

The initial election was scheduled for September 26 at 2:00 pm but was adjourned to October 5 by Mayor Shelly Oberoi, citing the need for councillors to carry mobile phones inside the voting hall. Lt Governor V K Saxena intervened, outlining specific guidelines and emphasizing the urgency for the election.

The Lt Governor directed that if the Mayor or Deputy Mayor were unavailable, the senior-most member should preside. Despite requests, the Mayor insisted on holding the election on October 5, while the Deputy Mayor and senior member did not respond. The Lt Governor stressed the importance of the election in maintaining municipal functions and appointed Jitender Yadav as the Returning Officer, mandating the entire process be video-graphed with no mobile phones allowed inside the polling area.

(With inputs from agencies.)