The Municipal Corporation of Delhi House was adjourned for the day on Thursday as ruckus and sloganeering continued over the election of six members of the standing committee.
While the Bharatiya Janata Party is protesting against Mayor Shelly Oberoi's decision to allow members to carry mobile phones to the booth area during the election of the MCD panel, the Aam Aadmi Party accused the saffron party of resorting to 'hooliganism' because of its defeat in the mayoral polls.
On Thursday, the House met at 8.30 am but was adjourned for an hour amid sloganeering.
As the House reconvened at 9.30 am, the ruckus continued and the mayor adjourned the proceedings till 10 am on Friday.
Addressing a press conference at the civic centre, Oberoi alleged that ballot papers were torn by the BJP councillors during the election.
"It's shameful what the BJP councillors did. The ballot box was thrown and ballot papers were torn and I was attacked," she alleged.
"The BJP resorted to unconstitutional behaviour in the House once again. BJP's Rekha Gupta and Amit Nagpal resorted to hooliganism in the House and we will take action against them," she said.
Senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh alleged that the BJP is 'not being able to accept their defeat' in the MCD mayoral polls.
The session started on Wednesday to elect the mayor, deputy mayor and member of the standing committee after the Supreme Court ruling on the matter.
The House, in the last 20 hours, witnessed brawls, sloganeering and over a dozen adjournments.
Several members of the BJP and AAP had on Wednesday night exchanged blows and hurled plastic bottles at each other in the chamber of the MCD House, on a day the city got its new mayor.
BJP councillors have demanded that the 40 votes cast till Thursday morning for the standing committee members should be declared null and void as the councillors carried mobiles phone with them.
However, the mayor said there is no rule against the councillors carrying their mobile phones. As both the sides are refusing to budge, there appears to be no end to the impasse.
The clashes between AAP-BJP members on Wednesday were triggered by a bitter argument between the two sides over the mode of conducting the election to the members of the standing committee
A few BJP members claimed that some of their fellow party councillors got hit with objects flung in the air, while Oberoi alleged that some BJP councillors tried to attack her during the proceedings to hold the election.
Oberoi, an AAP leader, alleged that many BJP councillors tried to 'attack' her when she was conducting the election.
"The extent of BJP's hooliganism is that they are trying to attack a woman," she was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the AAP.
AAP MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged that the BJP was not allowing the standing committee elections to take place.
'We want elections (to six members of Standing Committee). Despite the Supreme Court's order, the BJP is still creating ruckus and not allowing elections to take place, but the House will continue to function until the election process is over,' he tweeted in Hindi.
Senior BJP leader Vijender Gupta held a press conference past midnight and slammed the AAP and party chief Arvind Kejriwal for the incident.
AAP won the election to the posts of both the mayor and deputy mayor on Wednesday and the standing committee members' election was held over an hour after the deputy mayor was elected.
The House proceedings began around 11.30 am on Wednesday and business was conducted smoothly as AAP's Oberoi emerged victorious in the mayoral poll, defeating BJP's Rekha Gupta by a margin of 34 votes.
After the mayoral election, the House was briefly adjourned and then it resumed to elect the deputy mayor, again AAP's Aaley Mohammed Iqbal winning the election, defeating BJP's Kamal Bagri
Mayor Oberoi then adjourned the House for an hour.
As the mayor permitted carrying mobile phone to the booth area, BJP members opposed it.
Many of them later trooped to the Well of the House, and chanted anti-Arvind Kejriwal slogans.
"People who don't maintain order in the House, will be thrown out," the newly-elected mayor said.
Carrying of mobile phone and pen was not permitted during the proceedings of the election for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor. The BJP members were opposing the decision to allow it.
The mayor adjourned the House around 6.35 pm. Many members had already voted by then.
Seven candidates are in the fray for the six members of the standing committee.
On February 17, the Supreme Court had ordered issuing of a notice within 24 hours for convening the first meeting of the MCD to fix the date of elections for the mayor, the deputy mayor and the members of the standing committee of the civic body.
