New Delhi: In a significant development, AAP rebel candidate Narendra Kumar withdrew his nomination for the deputy mayor election on Monday afternoon. This leaves three candidates still vying for the position: rebel candidate Vijay Kumar from Trilokpuri ward, AAP’s official candidate Ravindra Bhardwaj from Aman Vihar ward, and Neeta Bisht from the BJP.
However, the election, scheduled for April 26th, faces potential delays due to several factors. The MCD is yet to receive permission from the Election Commission, and the process of finalizing the presiding officer and nominating 14 new MLAs remains incomplete.
Officials have stated that there is no deadline for obtaining permission from the EC, but it is crucial for the election process. The request for permission was sent earlier this month, but as of April 19th, it had not been received by the EC or the Delhi CEO.
Another concern raised by experts is the adherence to the DMC Act, which mandates holding the House meeting in the first month of each financial year and having a newly elected mayor preside over it. However, there have been instances where these norms were not met, such as during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 when mayor and deputy mayor elections were held in June.
The mayoral election involves 250 councillors, 10 MPs, and 14 MLAs. Of the councillors, 134 belong to AAP, 105 to BJP, and two are independent. Regarding the nomination of 14 members, the MCD has written to the Vidhan Sabha Speaker.
The current situation has raised concerns about the timely conduct of the election on April 26th. Officials have highlighted the need for a minimum of 72 hours to distribute the agenda and prepare for the polls. Further updates on the election status are expected as the relevant authorities address the outstanding issues.