Mayor to be from AAP: Adesh Gupta

New Delhi: The MCD mayor will be from the AAP and the BJP will play the role of a "strong Opposition", its Delhi unit chief Adesh Gupta said on Friday, ending speculation over the saffron party staking a claim on the mayor's post despite losing the civic polls.

Gupta added that the BJP councillors would resist if the AAP indulged in corruption at the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and work for the city's people as Opposition.

Several BJP leaders had earlier hinted that the party might go for the mayor's post despite losing the civic polls.

"Now over to electing a mayor for Delhi. It will all depend on who can hold the numbers in a close contest, which way the nominated councillors vote etc. Chandigarh has a BJP mayor, for instance," the BJP's IT department chief Amit Malviya had tweeted the day the results were being declared.

Hints dropped by other party leaders, including Manjinder Singh Sirsa and Tajinder Pal Bagga, also gave rise to speculation that the BJP might go for the mayor's post.

It was further buttressed by the example of Chandigarh where the AAP had earlier this year emerged as the single-largest party by winning 14 of the 35 wards in the municipal polls but the BJP secured the mayor's post. Gupta, however, put all the speculation to rest.

"The AAP has got the peoples' mandate, so they can have their mayor. We extend them good wishes," Gupta said when asked if the BJP would contest the mayoral poll.

The MCD mayor is elected by all 250 councillors in the House, seven Lok Sabha and three Rajya Sabha MPs from the city, and 14 MLAs nominated by the speaker of the Delhi Assembly.

Meanwhile, several Delhi BJP leaders said that the performance of the party had been "dismal" particularly in the 12 Assembly constituencies reserved for SC candidates.

"The party repeatedly lost Assembly polls in these constituencies despite attempts to reach out to voters in these areas. Not even one of these 12 seats were won by the BJP in past several Assembly elections including in 2015 and 2020," said a senior Delhi BJP leader.

The party also failed to strengthen its reach among Punjabi voters in Delhi, said its leaders.

"Out of 47 wards dominated by Punjabi voters, the BJP won 20 and AAP 27 wards," said a senior functionary of Delhi BJP.