BJP's Raja Iqbal Singh is Delhi's new Mayor, Congress candidate gets eight votes

Raja Iqbal Singh

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday reclaimed control of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) after a two-year gap, with its candidate Raja Iqbal Singh elected as the new Mayor of Delhi.

With the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) boycotting the election and the Congress reduced to a marginal presence, the BJP secured a comfortable victory, bagging 133 votes. Singh’s rival, Congress candidate Mandeep, managed only eight votes.

Singh served as mayor during the BJP's previous term. Yadav is a senior leader from the party's municipal wing.  MCD elections for the post of mayor and deputy mayor was held on April 25.

Singh is a seasoned leader who previously served as Mayor during BJP’s earlier tenure. He is currently the Leader of the Opposition in the MCD and has held several key positions including Mayor of North Delhi, Chairman of the Ward Committee in the Civil Line Zone and councillor of Mukherjee Nagar Ward 13.

Coming from a family with strong ties to the Shiromani Akali Dal, Singh’s political career began under its banner, The Indian Express reported. His father-in-law was a councillor from GTB Nagar and his brother remains active in Akali politics. His Civil Line stint until 2020 was with the Akali Dal but after the party’s exit from the NDA, he remained with the BJP. In 2021, the BJP appointed him Mayor of North MCD.

Known as a quiet strategist, Singh has maintained a low public profile while rising steadily in the BJP ranks. The MCD was unified into a single civic body in May 2022, combining East, North and South Delhi Municipal Corporations, making the upcoming mayoral election a high-stakes contest for city governance.