Delhi: Newly elected MLAs to take oath on Monday

NEW DELHI: The first session of the seventh Delhi legislative assembly will begin on Monday with the newly elected MLAs taking their oath, which will be administered by the pro-tem speaker Shoaib Iqbal.
Lieutenant governor Anil Baijal had appointed Iqbal, who got elected to the House for the sixth time, as the pro-tem speaker on Thursday on the recommendation of the Aam Aadmi Party dispensation.
According to the business bulletin issued by Delhi assembly secretariat, the election of the full-time speaker of the House will also take place on Monday after all members take their oath. The election of the speaker will also be conducted by Iqbal.
Sources said Ram Niwas Goel, who was the speaker in the previous assembly, was likely to retain the post.
The seventh legislative assembly of Delhi has 62 members from AAP, while the remaining eight belong to BJP.
Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and his six ministers had taken the oath of office and secrecy at a mega event at Ramlila Maidan on February 16. The council of ministers assumed office the next day with the first meeting of the cabinet being held on February 19.
The second day of the assembly session on Tuesday will see LG Baijal addressing the House. The Delhi assembly secretariat on Thursday released a bulletin for the newly elected members, which not only included the detailed plan for the three-day session but also specified the details of how the members would take their oath.
In case a member fails to take oath on the specified day, he/she may do so on any subsequent sitting of the assembly after giving advance information to the secretary. While the first assembly session will end on Wednesday, Delhi government officials said the budget session is likely to be called in the third week of March. Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, who also holds the charge of finance department, will present his sixth consecutive budget this year.