New Delhi: A day after announcing the election dates for the ward committee positions and three vacant seats in the standing committee, Municipal Corporation of Delhidecided to put them on hold on Saturday.In a notice issued by the municipal secretary, with the prior approval of mayor Raja Iqbal Singh, it was stated that “the election for one member to the standing committee from the house was scheduled for May 21.The elections of chairmen and deputy chairmen of 12 ward committees as well as the election of two standing committee members from City Sadar Paharganj and South zones were scheduled for May 22. However, all the elections stand postponed until further orders”.Leader of the opposition Ankush Narang earlier demanded the postponement of the elections amid the rising tensions between India and Pakistan. In the morning, Narang wrote to the mayor and municipal commissioner Ashwini Kumar demanding the same.However, sources in MCD said that by Tuesday, a decision would be taken on fresh dates. The MCD house will meet on May 21 at the same time and venue as scheduled.The elections are necessary because the high-powered standing committee hasn’t been formed for about two and a half years. As a result, many of the MCD’s tasks and projects, including waste management and garbage collection from areas, are being affected. The municipal commissioner has the authority to approve projects of only up to Rs 5 crore, and larger projects require the approval of the standing committee. It was expected that several obstacles to its formation would be removed after BJP secured a majority in MCD. Meanwhile, on Friday, the mayor instructed the municipal commissioner to visit the hospitals to ensure emergency services are in place and can be accessed easily.
