New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday dissolved the Delhi Assembly, thus making it mandatory for the Election Commission to hold elections in all the 70 seats of the House within the next six months. The process for the November 25 byelections to three seats has now been revoked by the EC.
There was confusion in the Congress over news channel reports that party vice-president Rahul Gandhi had included controversial leaders Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler in his nine-member election team for Delhi.
All through the day the Congress was in denial mode, suggesting no such committee had been formed for the Delhi polls. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra termed Mr Gandhi’s reported decision as “shocking.”
The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee said giving prominence to Mr Kumar and Mr Tytler would be suicidal for the Congress.
While the Congress and the BJP have decided to contest without projecting chief ministerial candidates, the AAP is set to enter the fray under the leadership of its convenor, Mr Arvind Kejriwal.
A day after the Union Cabinet ratified lieutenant governor Najeeb Jung’s recommendation to dissolve the Delhi Assembly, the MHA issued a notification saying Mr Mukherjee had dissolved the House with immediate effect.
