MCD Councillor Quits AAP for New Outfit, Cites Poor Leadership

Bobby Kinnar, who is the first transwoman to be elected a municipal councillor in the history of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in 2022, resigned from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday and joined the newly-formed Indraprastha Vikas Party (IVP), becoming the 16th councillor to break away from the AAP and join the new outfit.

- Paras Singh

NEW DELHI: The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) will roll back the user charge component of the property tax, under which owners were required to pay an additional fee for garbage collection, and introduce a property tax amnesty scheme to help property owners settle past tax dues, Delhi mayor Raja Iqbal Singh announced on Tuesday.

Singh, addressing a press conference alongside Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva, said the decisions were taken after meeting with residents' welfare associations and citizens' groups at the party's state headquarters at Pant Marg.

Mayor Singh said that no additional user charge will be imposed for the 2025-26 fiscal, and blamed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for inconveniencing residents. "We held an RWA meeting where we listened to all their suggestions. Under the guidance of our state president, we were instructed not to impose any such charges. In the past two and a half years, the AAP enforced a user charge without any discussion. People are willing to pay, but they expect proper facilities in return," the mayor said.

The introduction of the garbage user charge, which is currently being levied along with annual property tax, from this financial year (2025-26) has been opposed by both political parties, as well as residents' groups.

"A private member resolution will be introduced in the Delhi Municipal Corporation meeting on Wednesday to ensure that no such charge is imposed in the future," the mayor said, clarifying that adjustments would be made in the next tax cycle for owners who have already paid the tax and user fee.