New Delhi [India], April 26 : AAP candidates Shelly Oberoi and Aaley Muhammad Iqbal were on Wednesday re-elected as Mayor and Deputy Mayor with BJP candidates withdrawing their candidature.
Both Shelly Oberoi and Muhammad Iqbal spelt out their priorities in the new term and thanked the people of Delhi for their support. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said people have huge expectations from the party and there is a need to work hard.
"Congratulations Shelly and Aley on again becoming Mayor and Dy Mayor, this time unopposed. Best wishes to both. People have huge expectations from us. Work hard to meet their expectations," Kejriwal said in a tweet.
Shelly Oberoi said they have been elected due to the mandate given to AAP by people and the party will live up to the expectations.
"Wholeheartedly thank the people of Delhi for the love and trust they have showered upon @AamAadmiParty. It is because of this mandate that we have been elected once again. We promise that the AAP Govt will live up to everyone's expectations and transform Delhi," she said in a tweet.
Aaley Muhammad Iqbal said he will continue to work for improving amenities in Delhi and serving its residents.
"Heartfelt thanks to the people of Delhi. With your wishes and of Chief Minister Shri @ArvindKejriwal ji, I am re-elected unopposed as Deputy Mayor. Serving the people of Delhi will be my first priority. I will constantly strive for it," he said in a tweet.
The Deputy Mayor said that he will take all councillors along for a "developed and progressive Delhi".
BJP candidate Shikha Rai, who was the candidate for post of Mayor, withdrew from the fray on the day of the elections. The other party candidate, Soni Pal, withdrew her candidature for the post of Deputy Mayor.
Delhi BJP said party candidates withdrew nominations as AAP was not making MCD functional through the formation of the standing committee.
Shelly Oberoi completed her 38-day tenure as Mayor on March 31. As per the norms, the election process needs to be completed before April 30.
The post of mayor in the national capital sees five single-year terms on a rotational basis with the first year reserved for women, the second for the open category, the third for the reserved category and the remaining two again for the open category. Delhi gets a new mayor after the end of a financial year.
The municipal elections in Delhi were held on December 4 and the results were announced on December 7. AAP came out victorious with 134 seats out of 250.
The earlier election for the post of mayor saw high drama with AAP and BJP councillors clashing with each other during one of the meetings.
Three attempts to elect the Mayor failed due to bickering between the Aam Aadmi Party and Bharatiya Janata Party.
AAP also moved the Supreme Court over the elections. Shelly Oberoi was elected mayor of Delhi in the fourth attempt after the wrangling.
The two parties had also clashed over the issue of election of members of the standing committee.
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