NEW DELHI: The long, intense, high-decibel and often bitter campaign for the February 5 Delhi assembly elections ended on Monday – with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP locked in a fierce battle. On Wednesday, people of Delhi will vote to decide if Arvind Kejriwal‘s AAP gets a record third term or if the BJP makes a historic comeback. For the Congress, which is the third contender in this political battle, perhaps the first and biggest challenge would be to prevent a hat-trick of zeros in Delhi assembly.
On the last day of campaigning, Kejriwal, along with Delhi chief minister Atishi, addressed three rallies, including one in Kalkaji, to mobilise supporters. Kejriwal has claimed that his party will win at least 55 seats in the 70-member assembly. In the last two elections, AAP decimated both BJP and Congress winning 62 seats in 2020 and 67 seats in 2015.
The BJP, which has managed to keep its vote share intact but has failed to win enough seats, held 22 roadshows and rallies across the city. Union home minister Amit Shah, defence minister Rajnath Singh, BJP president J P Nadda, and several BJP chief ministers were at the forefront of last-day campaigning.
The Congress, which has lost both its vote share and seats in the last two decades, also intensified its efforts for a comeback. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi held separate roadshows in Kalkaji and Kasturba Nagar, aiming to regain the party’s lost foothold in the capital.
The election battle saw sharp political exchanges over welfare schemes, alleged corruption revolving around liquor scam and ‘Sheesh Mahal’, joblessness, water supply and sewers, toxic air, polluted Yamuna and free health insurance. AI-generated spoofs, catchy slogans, and roadshows dominated the campaign.
While the AAP branded the BJP as the “Bharatiya Jhootha Party” (party of liars) and “Gali Galoch Party” (abusive party), Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to the AAP as “AAP-Daa” (disaster) and its leader Kejriwal as “Ghoshna Mantri” (minister of announcements). Congress, attempting to regain relevance, called Kejriwal “Farziwal” (Fake) and a “Chhota Recharge” (small recharge) of Modi.
The high pitched campaigning was also dominated by intense blame-game among the three major parties.
The hot seats of New Delhi of AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal and Kalkaji seat of Chief Minister Atishi attracted special attention all through the campaign.
Throughout the campaign, the ruling AAP raised issues of poll code violation, alleged EC bias in favour of the BJP and wooed voters by showcasing its development model and offering 15 guarantees, including monthly financial assistance for women and others.
The BJP launched a relentless campaign targeting Kejriwal over charges of corruption against him and his government. The BJP has claimed that the people of Delhi are yearning for a change and will form a double engine government – a reference for same governments in state and Centre.
While all the three contenders are confident of a good show, the decision of people of Delhi will be revealed on February 8, when the votes are counted in what has turned out to be one of the most high-stakes electoral battles.
1.56 crore voters to cast their ballots across 13,766 polling stations
According to the data of the Delhi chief electoral officer (CEO), 1.56 crore voters are eligible to cast their ballots across 13,766 polling stations. Among the total voters, 83.76 lakh are men, 72.36 lakh are women, and 1,267 are third-gender voters.
In the 2020 Delhi assembly election voter turnout stood at 62.82 per cent, 4.65 per cent lower than 67.47 per cent in 2015. In 2013, the turnout was 66.02 per cent, 8.42 per cent higher than 2008’s 57.6 per cent.