Raja Iqbal Singh Elected Delhi's New Mayor As BJP Reclaims MCD: Who Is He?

Delhi gets a new mayor as BJP’s Raja Iqbal Singh was elected the new head of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi on Friday, marking the party's return to power in the civic body after a two-year gap. Singh secured a comfortable victory with 133 votes, benefiting from the Aam Aadmi Party’s boycott of the election and the Congress's diminished presence in the corporation.

Additionally, BJP's Jai Bhagwan Yadav was elected unopposed as the Deputy Mayor after the Congress candidate Ariba Asif Khan withdrew her nomination for the post of Deputy Mayor.   

With this win, the BJP reasserts control over the MCD, which had been under the AAP's leadership since the 2022 elections.

Singh, who was the BJP’s declared mayoral candidate, brings with him prior experience in the role, having served as the mayor of North MCD in 2021 during the party’s previous term.

Raja Iqbal Singh currently serves as the Leader of the Opposition in the MCD and has held multiple leadership roles within the civic body. A seasoned municipal politician, he previously served as the mayor of North MCD and chaired the Ward Committee in the Civil Line Zone. He has also been a councillor from Mukherjee Nagar Ward 13.

Singh hails from a politically active family with roots in the Shiromani Akali Dal. His father-in-law had represented the GTB Nagar constituency earlier as councillor.

Although he represented the Akali Dal till 2020 in the Civil Line Zone, he refused to step down after the party exited the NDA.

The BJP later appointed him as North MCD mayor in 2021.