Contentious Election Date Sparks Controversy in Delhi's Municipal Corporation

The Aam Aadmi Party has deemed the scheduled election of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi's standing committee member for Friday unconstitutional. They assert the election will take place on October 5 as originally announced. Mayor Shelly Oberoi postponed the election after disruptions, but Lt Governor VK Saxena overturned this decision.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has declared that holding the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) standing committee election on Friday, as scheduled, is 'unconstitutional and illegal.' The party insists that the election will only take place on October 5 as initially planned.

The election was postponed to October 5 by Mayor Shelly Oberoi after disturbances over the frisking of councillors on Thursday. However, Lt Governor VK Saxena later reversed this postponement, instructing MCD Commissioner Ashwani Kumar to conduct the election on Friday at 1 pm.

Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia and MCD Mayor Shelly Oberoi accused the BJP and the municipal commissioner of subverting democracy and constitutional protocols in a press conference held on Friday. They allege that the commissioner's order, which appoints an additional commissioner as presiding officer for the election, is against the rules. According to Sisodia, such an order should only come from the mayor, deputy mayor, or senior councilor, echoing the concerns about legality and fairness.

(With inputs from agencies.)