Sachdeva urges party councillors to ensure cleanliness across city
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva on Tuesday urged party councillors, in a meeting ahead of the April 29 mayoral polls, to ensure cleanliness across every street and road in the city.
Sachdeva said councillors, along with their MLAs, should commit to maintaining cleanliness while the MCD works to clear all three landfill sites in the next 15 months.
According to the statement, the meeting held at the party’s state headquarters is to ensure a unified front as the electoral college prepares to elect the next mayor, deputy mayor and three vacant seats in the standing committee for Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections.
Newly inducted into the BJP, Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal attended the meeting for the first time.
The electoral college for this year’s mayoral election comprises 273 votes, including 249 councillors, 14 MLAs nominated by the Delhi Assembly, seven Lok Sabha MPs, and three Rajya Sabha members from Delhi who will decide the mayor. A candidate requires 137 votes to win the election.
The BJP has already fielded Pravesh Wahi, a seasoned three-term councillor from Rohini-East, as its mayoral candidate.
With AAP opting out of the contest and the Congress nominating Haji Zarif, it is likely that the BJP candidate is going to sail through, as the incumbents hold the majority.
With the recent induction of AAP’s seven Rajya Sabha members into the party’s fold, the BJP’s sole focus is on capitalising on its strengthened numbers in the 273-member electoral college.
Going by current numbers, the BJP holds an edge with 143 votes, including 123 councillors, seven Lok Sabha and two Rajya Sabha MPs and 11 MLAs. The AAP has 105 votes, comprising 100 councillors, three MLAs, and two Rajya Sabha members, with Swati Maliwal recently quitting the party and joining the BJP.
Within the saffron camp, senior leaders emphasised that the new Mayor would prioritise resolving the administrative deadlock and fast-tracking civic projects across the city.