‘I ran for my life…’: Delhi mayor Shelly Oberoi after kicks, punches in MCD House

Delhi mayor Shelly Oberoi has alleged some of the Bharatiya Janata Party members inflicted a life-threatening attack on her during fresh clashes between the councillors of the BJP and the AAP at the Civic Centre on Friday.

Oberoi also alleged that her colleague Ashu Thakur was also attacked by another BJP councillor.

Earlier, the mayor adjourned the House and announced that the election to six members of the standing committee of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) will be held afresh at 11am on February 27.

AAP MLA Atishi alleged Thakur was held by her scarf and dragged from the dais to one of the exit gates of the House. Later, Atishi, Oberoi and other AAP leaders lodged a complaint against BJP councillors at the Kamla Market Police Station.

“I came to the police station to file a complaint against them (BJP councillors) and asked the police to provide me police protection,” Oberoi told reporters.

Unprecedented scenes of uproar and clashes were witnessed in the House after Oberoi declared that one vote cast during the election to the standing committee of MCD on Friday was “invalid”.

Oberoi had barely started to announce the results when the ruckus began. One councillor even ripped off the mayor’s mike on the dais.

“When I was announcing the standing committee election result, they (BJP councillors) pushed my chair and attacked me. BJP councillors Ravi Negi, Arjun Marwah, Chandan Choudhary and others inflicted life-threatening attack on me… Chaudhary dragged my chair and pushed me. I ran for my life,” she alleged.

“They created a ruckus and came up on stage to attack me. I thank female civil defence personnel for saving me. BJP members physically assaulted AAP female members. The BJP accept your defeat,” she said.

It was the third day of commotion in the House.

She also alleged that the BJP “deliberately” created a ruckus for over 2.5 months to stall the MCD meeting and run the house unconstitutionally.

The single vote could tilt the balance of the standing committee in either party’s favour. The committee is an 18-member body, where the remaining members are elected by zonal ward committees, where too the fight is expected to be a close one between AAP and BJP.

Along with aldermen, appointed by the lieutenant governor and members who have voting rights in zonal committees, this balance could make or break the BJP’s control of the civic body’s key decision-making panels.

“The voting process to elect the members of the standing committee took place once again and it was all peaceful even until the counting process. But as soon as the BJP realised it was at the losing end, their members climbed on the stage and physically tried to attack mayor Shelly Oberoi. She eventually was forced to escape the attack and save her life,” said Atishi.

The BJP hit back, saying AAP members were tampering with the election results. “Election results are being tampered with, wrong announcements are being made and they’re indulging in fist fights. Several of our councillors were injured. An FIR is being lodged. The manner in which they’ve been beaten up, AAP has shown that they are a party of goons,” said Vijender Gupta, the former Delhi BJP president.

Harsh Malhotra, a general secretary of BJP, said the corporation should be dissolved and the party will approach the court with the demand.