Gurgaon: More than a year after MCG House was elected, polls for senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor will be held on April 30, in line with directions from Punjab and Haryana high court.On March 5, the civic body told HC it would conduct the elections within eight weeks. The matter had reached HC through a petition filed by city-based resident and advocate Rohit Madan, who sought to fill the two posts that have remained vacant for over a year.The elections will be held at Haryana Institute of Public Administration. Sources said if BJP fails to arrive at a consensus on candidates, some councillors may abstain from voting.BJP has a clear majority in MCG House, having won 24 of the 36 seats in March 2025 civic polls, its first majority in the corporation. Ten independents were also elected, and eight of them later joined BJP. Congress and JJP won one seat each.Gurgaon mayor Raj Rani Malhotra said, “Names of candidates contesting the two posts will be announced at the meeting on April 30. If more than one candidate comes forward for any post, elections will be held. Otherwise, one candidate for each post will be elected unopposed. We stand united as one House, committed to the welfare of the city, regardless of the party affiliation of winning candidates.”Under Section 36(2) of Haryana Municipal Corporation Act, 1994, the corporation is required to elect two members from among its elected councillors as senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor. Their term is five years or the remainder of their tenure, whichever is shorter.An earlier attempt to hold the elections on August 11, 2025, along with polls for the finance and contracts committee in both MCG and MCM, was postponed indefinitely because councillors failed to reach a consensus.Vacancy in the two posts has also raised questions about the legality of F&CC, as the Act requires both deputy mayors to be part of the panel. Section 40(3) states that the committee must include the mayor, two deputy mayors, two elected members and the MCG commissioner. The panel is empowered to take decisions on contracts and procurement on behalf of the corporation.At present, MCG’s F&CC comprises mayor Raj Rani Malhotra, councillors Anup Singh of Ward 25 and Sundar Singh of Ward 1, and commissioner Pradeep Dahiya.Elections to these two posts in MCM were also held after the intervention of HC. It was in July last year that HC directed Haryana govt to conduct the elections for the posts of senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor of MCM fairly, preferably within a three-week period, following which deputies were elected in MCM House.
