Congress will not allow any attempt to snatch the rights of Dalits—Devender Yadav

 

Lt. Governor assures Congress delegation of appropriate action very soon in the appointment of  a Mayor from the SC/ST community—Devender Yadav

 

NEW DELHI, September 2, 2024—A delegation of the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC), led by DPCC president Shri Devender Yadav, met Lt. Governor Shri V.K.Saxena at Raj Niwas today, and submitted him  a memorandum regarding the illegal manner in which incumbent Mayor Shelly Oberoi has been continuing in her post since  April 2024 without holding elections as her term had ended on 31^st March, 2024. Shri Yadav said that in the third year of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), it was the turn of a Scheduled Caste member to become the Mayor, but the ruling Aam Aadmi Party has not held the elections, depriving an SC candidate of his/her turn to become the Mayor, which only showed  AAP’s deliberate neglect of people from the SC/ST and backward communities.

 

Besides Shri Devender Yadav, others in the delegation consisted of Communication Department Chairman & Ex MLA Shri Anil Bhardwaj, Former Mayor Shri Farhad Suri, Ex MC Shri Abhishek Dutt, Leader of Party in MCD Smt. Nazia Danish, Municipal Councillor Shri Haji Zarif and Municipal Councillor Smt. Shagufta Chaudhary.

 

Shri Devender Yadav brought to the notice of the Lt. Governor that according to the provisions of the MCD Act (Section-35), a Scheduled Caste member of the House should be elected as Mayor by April in the third year of the MCD. “However, the incumbent Mayor continues to illegally occupy the position till date”, and therefore all decisions taken by her after 31^st March, 2024 would be “illegal and challengeable in the court”,

 

The Congress delegation pointed out that the Constitution of India grants protection to save the rights of SC/ST, and sought the intervention of the Lt. Governor in the appointment of a new  Mayor from the Scheduled Caste community without any further delay and also to ensure that the provisions of the law are not set aside for political gains by any party. Shri Yadav also impressed upon the Lt. Governor that he should intervene in the matter and ensure that the Mayor from the SC/ST community gets a full one-year term. Shri Devender Yadav said that Congress president Shri Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of the Opposition Shri Rahul Gandhi have been fighting for the rights of the Dalits and the backward communities, and the party will not allow any injustice to be done to the Dalit community.

 

Shri Devender Yadav, later talking to the media, said that the Lt. Governor gave a patient hearing to the Congress delegation, and promised to take an apt decision very soon. Shri Yadav said that LG Shri V.K.Saxena expressed grave concern   as it was a serious matter, and assured the Congress delegation that no injustice would be done to the SC/ST community in the election of the new Mayor.