BJP realises its ‘triple-engine sarkar' dreams as Raja Iqbal Singh becomes Delhi mayor
In the mayoral elections on Friday, Raja Iqbal Singh secured 133 of the total 142 votes, and his opponent and Congress candidate Mandeep received eight votes.
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Raja Iqbal Singh is the new mayor of Delhi, with the BJP reclaiming power in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) after a gap of three years.
The BJP ruled over the MCD from 2007 to 2022. As the civic body split into three between 2012 and 2022, the party went on to hold power over three separate corporations, the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC), South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) and East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC).
On 22 May 2022, the BJP-led Union government unified the three corporations. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) emerged victorious in the 2022 civic body elections.
Soon after his election, Raja Iqbal Singh said that the primary goal of the BJP-led MCD would be to improve Delhi's sanitation system.
'We will ensure the removal of the mountains of garbage; we will also solve the waterlogging problems and provide all basic and necessary facilities to the people of Delhi. We will all work together, with full dedication, and work hard,' he told the media.
Before the election, AAP Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj said that AAP had decided not to field a candidate this time. 'BJP should elect its own Mayor; BJP should form its own standing committee and rule Delhi without any excuses,' he told media persons.
Speaking to ThePrint, Delhi BJP president Virendraa Sachdeva said the party's responsibility has increased, but the BJP would ensure Delhi sees 'only development' now.
'Our responsibility has increased. It is a triple-engine government now. Right from the Centre, state, and municipal level today, the BJP is in power. Over the past two years, corruption has increased at the municipal level under the AAP. Now, we have to ensure development. The Delhi government and the MCD will work in tandem and get all the support required from the Centre,' said Virendraa Sachdeva.
'With the election of a BJP mayor and deputy mayor in the MCD, the way has been paved for the smooth functioning of the corporation's administration and citizen services. The new mayor will soon initiate the formation of the MCD standing committee (highest decision-making body) so that once again, financial and administrative decisions follow the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957,' he added.
'To this end, the newly elected mayor will ensure the swift formation of the MCD standing committee so that the people of Delhi can start experiencing the benefits of a 'triple-engine' government as soon as possible,' he said.
According to a BJP leader, though it is a 'triple-engine' government, the focus will also be on the party's performance now.
'Waterlogging and ensuring clean air will have to be our priority. It would get difficult. AAP will try to shift the blame squarely on us now because we have a BJP government at the Centre, state and municipal levels. We would have to ensure we do our bit,' he said.
While the BJP earlier nominated Raja Iqbal Singh as its nominee for the mayoral post, it nominated Jai Bhagwan for the deputy mayor post.
Bhagwan was elected unopposed after the Congress nominee withdrew his candidacy.
The current strength of the MCD is 238. Since the election of some councillors to the assembly, 12 seats have been vacant.
Of the 250 seats, the BJP has 113, up from 104 in 2022. The AAP has only 116, down from 134. The Congress has eight. One councillor is Independent.
The electoral college for the mayoral election includes 238 councillors, 10 MPs (seven from the Lok Sabha and three from the Rajya Sabha), and 14 MLAs.
Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta had nominated 11 BJP and three AAP MLAs as the electors this time.
The BJP lost the MCD after 15 years in 2022, when the AAP bagged 134 of 250 wards. At the time, the BJP won 104 wards, the Congress nine, and the Independents three.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
Also Read: Congress's CWC attacks BJP for 'exploiting' Pahalgam terror attack, says Hindus deliberately targeted
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
BSP plans to increase its tally to 30, chalks out poll strategy
Nagpur: After BJP and Congress, it is the Bahujan Samaj Party ( BSP ) that is a major player in the Nagpur civic body polls, even emerging the third-largest party in the 2017 polls. With 10 seats under its belt, BSP is now gearing up to increase the tally to 30 and has chalked out a strategy for the same. BSP leader Prakash Gajbhiye said, "A huge population resides in slums and lower-income areas within Nagpur city, and those in power have neglected this completely. I can show you so many places in Nagpur where there is no proper sewage system, no proper roads, and the water supply is also not regular. People have realised that BJP or Congress will never solve these problems; hence they will turn to BSP for that." The party has also worked out their targeted seats in the NMC assembly constituencies, highlighting their preparedness. Gajbhiye said, "Our maximum seats will come from North Nagpur, for which our target is 15. The next highest will be from South-West, where we hope to bag around seven seats. Then in the West and South, our target is three each. And for Central, it is two seats. Now, this is the minimum target, but we are confident of getting much more. " He added that BJP's strategy of regularisation of land and building pucca homes, which can help connect with voters, won't work in the polls. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Memperdagangkan CFD Emas dengan salah satu spread terendah? IC Markets Mendaftar Undo "This scheme, to provide housing for the poor, was started by Behenji (Mayawati), so BJP is simply doing a copy and paste of that formula," said Gajbhiye. Regarding Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), Gajbhiye said, "People now realise that VBA won't be able to have any impact on their lives. We have been representing Nagpurians' voices in the civic body for a long time, so we have a proven track record." Their ace up the sleeve is party chief Mayawati herself. "We are planning for two major rallies in Maharashtra. One will be in Mumbai and the other in Nagpur. If Behenji holds a rally, then the entire voting dynamic changes at one stroke," said Gajbhiye.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
‘Authoritarian' BJP wants to unleash anarchy in UP elections: Akhilesh
1 2 Lucknow: Cautioning the party cadre of BJP's plans to "unleash anarchy" during the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday said the saffron party is "riddled with authoritarian mindset and conduct". "BJP has become a challenge for the Indian Constitution because its very character is undemocratic. The BJP functionaries and cadre have unleashed anarchy by their actions like grabbing land from the possession of the poor. The BJP now stands for 'Bhu-mafia Party'. The entire BJP govt is indulging in grabbing whatever it can lay its hands upon," Akhilesh said, addressing party functionaries and workers at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia auditorium at party headquarters in Lucknow. "Robberies, murders and rape of minor girls have become the order of the day as the govt has failed to control crime, particularly against women and girl child," he said. Acknowledging the efforts of the party cadre and foot soldiers on ground, Akhilesh said the SP functionaries were braving the scorching summer sun to reach out to the people and inform them about the failures of the BJP. "Despite mercury soaring beyond 42 degrees Celsius during the day, our partymen are going from door to door to share the sentiments of almost every section of the society which is unhappy with the BJP govt," Akhilesh said, adding that such dedicated efforts would ensure the party's reach in every corner of the state and beyond. "SP is fighting the BJP at every front, be it failure of the govt in the state as well as the Centre, and at the ideological level as well. We will continue to do so to keep up with the commitment we have with the people and work hard to play a constructive role in taking UP on the path of development once again, like we did during the erstwhile SP govt," he said. 'Beware the ides of June' Lucknow: A cryptic social media post from Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav has triggered a buzz in the corridors of power about some political developments in the BJP around June 15. A couplet posted by Akhilesh on X in Hindi, read: "15 June ko shrey lene ki Bhajpai yukti, kisi ki niyukti to kisi ki vimukti (June 15 will see BJP's mechanism of taking credit for appointing some, liberating some others)." In political circles, the post is being seen in the light of the three-day national level training camp of the BJP being organised for its lawmakers in Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh.
India Gazette
an hour ago
- India Gazette
Rahul Gandhi accuses BJP government of
ANI 12 Jun 2025, 01:27 GMT+10 New Delhi [India], June 12 (ANI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday launched accused the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh government of 'suppressing truth' about deaths in Maha Kumbh earlier this year and alleged that 'like in COVID, the bodies of the poor were erased from the statistics'.'BBC report reveals that figures of deaths in Kumbh Mela stampede were hidden. Like in COVID, the bodies of the poor were erased from the statistics. Like after every major railway accident the truth is suppressed. This is the BJP model - if there is no counting of the poor, then there is no responsibility either!' Gandhi stated in his X post. Thirty people were killed during stampede in Maha Kumbh on Mauni Amavasya. The Uttar Pradesh government had announced financial assistance of Rs 25 lakh for the families of the deceased in the stampede and a judicial inquiry was also set up. Earlier in March, the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha that asked about the number of persons killed and injured during the recent Maha Kumbh Stampede, said that 'No such data is maintained centrally.' Rai said that 'Public Order' and 'Police' are State subjects as per the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India. Organization of religious congregations, crowd management, provision of amenities to devotees, prevention of any type of disaster during the congregation, etc., are closely linked to 'public order', which is a state subject. (ANI)
