The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to list for hearing on February 3 a plea of Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) mayoral candidate Shelly Oberoi seeking directions to ensure mayoral election in Delhi in a time-bound manner.

The petition filed on Thursday by advocate Shadan Farasat was mentioned before a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud for urgent listing.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for the petitioners — Oberoi and AAP Leader of the House in MCD Mukesh Goel — told the court that the matter relates to the Mayor’s election in Delhi.

 A Bench headed by Chief Justice Chandrachud and comprising Justice Dipankar Datta took note of the submissions of senior advocate A M Singhvi, appearing for Oberoi, on early holding of the mayoral poll for MCD.  “It will be listed on February 3,” the CJI said.

The petition has sought the mayor election to be held in a time-bound manner as the same has been delayed for over a month despite AAP securing majority in the MCD polls declared on December 7. They also sought that aldermen should not be allowed to vote as they do not have the right to do so under Article 243R of the Constitution and Section 3 of the DMC Act.

According to the petition, the elected councillors are given oath in precedence over the aldermen. It further stated that the election of mayor and deputy Mayor should be held as per law which does not permit aldermen to cast vote.

 The mayoral election in the national capital was stalled on Tuesday last for the second time this month as the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) House was adjourned indefinitely by the lieutenant governor-appointed presiding officer, following a ruckus created by some councillors. The first meeting of the newly-elected MCD House on January 6 was also adjourned amid a ruckus by the AAP and BJP members.

This is not the first time that the AAP has taken recourse to courts in matters concerning MCD. In March, when the elections to the trifurcated MCD (East, South and North as it existed prior to its reunification by Parliament in April), were getting delayed, the AAP had approached the top court for a direction to ensure timely holding of elections. Meanwhile, in a video message, AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj on Friday said that people have chosen the AAP to helm the MCD but the BJP wants to "capture" it through "unconstitutional" means.   

"We have moved the Supreme Court, seeking directions to elect a mayor in a time-bound manner. It makes clear that we are in favour of the polls but the BJP doesn't want it," the AAP leader said in the message.

Bharadwaj said the BJP's tenure in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) ended in 2022. "Since then, the saffron party has tried to keep the municipal body under its control on one pretext or the other -- be it unification, delimitation or mayoral polls."

The AAP won 134 of the 250 wards in the MCD polls held in December. The BJP managed to win 104 wards.