After securing a huge win in the Assembly elections, the BJP is eyeing a "triple-engine government" in Delhi by securing the post of mayor. The mayoral elections are expected to be held in April, and the BJP is working to consolidate its numbers and wrest control of the MCD from the AAP, which party insiders said, is not going to be an uphill task.

AAP had won the last mayoral election, held in November, by three votes. However, the MCD's tenure since then has been tumultuous, with both the BJP and AAP engaging in aggressive poaching of each other's councillors. The BJP can easily get its councillor elected as mayor, party leaders said on Wednesday.

"The BJP, which won 48 seats in the recent assembly polls, will have 10 out of the 14 nominated members in the MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) while AAP will have four. Besides, several AAP councilors are ready to switch to the BJP for development of their wards under the new government," a senior Delhi BJP leader said.

According to officials, three of AAP's 121 councillors in the MCD won the assembly polls while eight of the BJP's 120 councillors were elected to the House. As per the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, the MCD is required to elect a new mayor and deputy mayor for which elections are supposed to be held in April every year.

Apart from the councillor, 14 MLAs (nominated from parties in proportion to their representation in the Delhi Assembly), seven Lok Sabha MPs (all BJP) and three Rajya Sabha MPs (at the moment, all of them are from AAP) are going to be a part of the mayoral electorate.

In the 2022 MCD polls, AAP had won 134 wards, the BJP 104, the Congress nine and Independents three.

According to the BJP leaders, the mayoral election would provide the party an opportunity to have a "triple-engine government" to serve the people of Delhi. The vote tally of the BJP -- including Delhi's seven Lok Sabha MPs, chances of AAP councillors switching sides, and eight MLAs as nominated members -- make it clear that the party will win the mayor's post, another senior leader said.

"Several AAP councilors have already approached us but we have not given them any assurances so far. In the November mayoral election, several AAP councillors had voted for the BJP candidate," he said.