The election to fill up the lone vacancy of the 18-member Standing Committee — the highest decision-making body of the MCD — will be held on Thursday. The vacancy was created by the resignation of BJP councilor Kamaljeet Sehrawat after her election from the West Delhi Lok Sabha seat earlier this year.

The committee is the MCD’s key decision-making body, overseeing the civic body’s finances. No proposal exceeding Rs 5 crore can proceed without its approval. If the BJP secures a majority in the Standing Committee on Thursday, it could create a scenario where AAP leads the MCD, but the BJP controls its finances.

Speaking to mediapersons, Sachdeva said the decision of the leaders to leave AAP stemmed from disappointment over “unfulfilled promises” and “increasing corruption” within the party. Taking on AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal and Chief Minister Atishi, he added, “If Kejriwal is so keen to become Shri Ram, he should first stay away from the political chair for 14 years.”

Preeti, meanwhile, accused Atishi of instigating councilors to beat up BJP members during the mayoral polls. “If Atishi has become the chief minister, this is not proof of her being educated but rather a result of her being a puppet.”

This is not the first wave of defections from AAP — while two party councilors had joined the BJP before the Lok Sabha polls, five more had defected to the BJP on August 26. The BJP has also nominated a former AAP councilor to contest the election for the final Standing Committee seat.

Leader of Opposition in the MCD, Raja Iqbal Singh, said, “The MCD at present has an effective strength of 249 members. AAP has only 124 councilors while the majority mark is 125… it has clearly lost the majority.”

The Standing Committee comprises 12 elected members from ward committees and six from within the House. In the ward committee polls, held on September 4, BJP won seven seats while AAP bagged five. Elections to the six Standing Committee members after the 2023 mayoral polls had resulted in both AAP and BJP securing three seats each. Following this, Sehrawat was elected to the Lok Sabha.

At present, while AAP holds eight Standing Committee seats, the BJP has 9. If the AAP secures the last standing committee seat, it will lead to a tie. However, if the BJP wins, giving it a clear majority, it will have the power to control the MCD’s purse strings.

If the Congress, which has nine members in the House, chooses to vote against AAP in Thursday’s election, AAP could lose its majority in the Standing Committee too. However, sources said Congress may abstain from voting, which could leave AAP with a slim advantage in securing the final seat.

Meanwhile, taking to X, AAP Malviya Nagar MLA Somnath Bharti expressed concern over the switch, particularly by Phogat. He claimed that while joining the party at the BJP headquarters, Phogat “didn’t even speak a word and hence I am worried about her”. He added that Phogat is in a vulnerable state, as she is suffering from a brain tumor and has recently lost her husband.

“She is in trauma and the BJP seems to have tortured her to an unbelievable extent to force her to join the BJP. Shame on BJP! Since her house is locked, phones are off not only of her but of her children too. She is not reachable to even her own family… She seems to have been abducted by BJP,” he alleged, requesting the LG and Delhi Police to locate her.

When The Indian Express reached out to Phogat, there was no response.