Delhi Gets New Mayor, AAP's Shelly Oberoi Voted In
Delhi finally got a Mayor on Wednesday after three failed attempts as Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Shelly Oberoi won the polls with 150 votes. Oberoi defeated Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Rekha Gupta by 34 votes to become the new Mayor of Delhi.
Following her victory, the AAP chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal congratulated Shelly Oberoi and said that it was a victory for the public and that the goons have lost.
Delhi's newly elected Mayor Shelly Oberoi said, “I assure you all that I will run this House in a constitutional manner. I expect you all will maintain the dignity of the House and cooperate in its smooth functioning.”
It may be noted that AAP secured 150 votes in the 274-member MCD House in Delhi. As per reports, had the aldermen been allowed to vote, the strength of the BJP would have gone up to 123 from 113, which is close to the 138 majority mark. However, the aldermen or the nominated members did not vote today.
Meanwhile, in the election for the Standing Committee, AAP is likely to win three seats and the BJP is likely to win two. The fight is over the sixth seat.
Speaking to India Today ahead of the elections in Delhi, winning candidate Shelly Oberoi had said that on previous occasions, the presiding officer was running the House illegally, which is in violation of the constitutional provisions.
She said, “The BJP is not able to accept the mandate given by the Delhi voters. Hope the BJP will honour the SC judgment. We are confident of winning election to the post of Mayor, deputy Mayor and standing committee.”
The House had convened for the first time on January 6, a month after the municipal polls. It was adjourned after bitter exchanges between BJP and AAP members. The second and third meetings on January 24 and February 6 also failed to carry out the exercise, and were both adjourned without electing a Mayor.
Both the BJP and AAP members had held each other responsible for the disruption of the proceedings with a ruckus over the decision to allow nominated members to vote.