NEW DELHI: In a significant boost to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Supreme Court on Friday said that nominated members --aldermen-- of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) cannot vote in the mayoral elections.
It directed the Lieutenant- Governor to issue notice within 24 hours for convening the first MCD meeting for holding the elections. A bench of CJI DY Chandrachud, Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala said delaying the mayoral polls in the national capital reflects poorly on everyone.
“Prima facie, we are of the view that Article 243R does not allow nominated members to vote. Let the meeting be held tomorrow and let the mayor be elected tomorrow, and as a national capital, it does not look good if the mayoral polls are held up,” the CJI remarked. The bench said that the elections should be held for the post of mayor at MCD’s first meeting, and the mayor shall thereafter preside over the election of the deputy mayor and six standing committee members.
The SC said that the notice should also decide a date for the first meeting. The SC order came on a plea filed by AAP mayor candidate Shelly Oberoi, seeking to bar nominated members from voting in mayor elections and other meetings of the civic body. The AAP, in the plea, also sought to conduct timebound elections, removing Satya Sharma as Pro Tem presiding officer, summoning a meeting of the MCD House within a week, and not adjourning the House till the elections are held.
For AAP, senior advocate AM Singhvi, while relying on Article 243R, which bars nominated members from voting, said that the decision of nominated members being allowed to vote in the elections for the posts was unconstitutional.
ASG Sanjay Jain for the MCD and SG Tushar Mehta for L-G VK Saxena argued that restriction on aldermen’s right to vote only applies to the corporation’s regular meetings where the business is transacted and would not extend to the first meeting after holding polls. The bench, however, said that the corporation’s meetings included all the meetings, and the bar should also apply to it where the mayor and deputy mayor will be elected.
AAP has 134 councillors in the 250-member MCD House
About 250 councillors constitute the MCD House. The BJP has the support of 105 councillors, including one Independent, against 134 by the AAP, which defeated the saffron party in the polls. As per MCD’s constitution, the aldermen have never been allowed to vote in the mayoral election.