New Delhi: The election for a member of the Standing Committee is set to take place today, with a special session of the house convened for this purpose. Both the BJP and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are determined to secure a victory for their respective candidate. If a BJP member is elected, the Standing Committee will be dominated by them. Conversely, if AAP’s candidate wins, both parties will have an equal number of members at 9 each. In the event of a tie, the formation of the Standing Committee will be decided by drawing lots. Currently, the BJP holds control over seven of the twelve MCD zones, while AAP governs five. This translates to seven members from BJP and five from AAP based on one member from each zone. Six members are elected to the Standing Committee from the house. Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, six members have already been chosen, with both parties having three members each. Kamlejit Sahrawat, a member of the Standing Committee, won a Lok Sabha seat, leading to her resignation from both the corporation council and the Standing Committee. Thus, the election on Thursday is specifically to fill the vacancy created by her departure.

AAP’s Claims

Leaders from AAP assert that despite three of their councilors joining the BJP, they still hold the majority in the house. Currently, AAP has 127 councilors compared to BJP’s 112. Additionally, there are 9 councilors from the Congress party and one independent councilor. With the departure of three councilors to the BJP, their count increased to 115, yet AAP still maintains a lead of 10 councilors. Both parties are confidently claiming victory as they head into this crucial election.