AAP to finalise first candidate list for MCD polls by February end

AAP is expected to finalise its first list of candidates for MCD polls by the month-end with over 10,000 aspirants are eying the 272 seats.

The party plans to take on BJP and Congress by focusing on alleged financial irregularities in the civic bodies and sanitation.

“Sanitation will be our major focus in the MCD polls as it is their primary duty to ensure cleanliness in the city. Delhi saw an outbreak of vector-borne diseases as the MCDs failed in their duty,” AAP’s Delhi unit convenor Dilip Pandey said.

Delhi is governed by multiple-agencies and civic bodies are a crucial cog in the wheel of day-to-day governance.

With the state government under its control, AAP now intends to wrest power from BJP which has been managing the civic bodies. Over the past few months, AAP has been raising issues related to alleged corruption in the MCDs.

More than 10,097 aspirants have declared their desire to contest on party tickets. Of these, 3,522 are from North MCD, 3,673 from South and 2,902 from East MCD.

The party has already formed a screening committee whose functioning will be reviewed by senior AAP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. Pandey and Delhi government ministers Kapil Mishra and Satyendar Jain are also a part of the committee.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is expected to return to the national capital from Bengaluru this week where he is undergoing a naturopathy course. A final decision on the candidates is expected after it.

“We should come up with the first list of candidates by the month-end. The review process is on and names will be given to the Political Affairs Committee (PAC) which will take a final call on this,” Pandey added.