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Journalism of Courage
Early trends from the Election Commission indicate that the Bharatiya Janata Party could come to power in Delhi, with its candidates leading in 38 of 65 seats where at least one round of counting is complete. The Delhi Assembly has 70 seats.
A BJP win would mean the party returns to power in the national capital after 27 years. It would also mean one of the biggest setbacks to the Aam Aadmi Party since it first came to power in Delhi in 2013, effectively changing the national political landscape.
The AAP is leading in 27 seats, while the Congress is yet to gain a lead in any seats in early trends.
BJP’s promise of continuing AAP’s welfare schemes and introducing a few of its own, such as Rs 2,500 for women per month, and introducing the Ayushman Bharat scheme with an overall insurance cover of Rs 10 lakh for the residents of Delhi, had found favour among the poor.
The tax relief announced in the Budget speech, which will ensure that those earning below Rs 12 lakh per year will not have to pay any tax, meanwhile struck a chord with the middle class.
For the Aam Aadmi Party, winning the Municipal Corporation of Delhi elections in 2022 became a thorn in its side as it could not get any projects off the ground because of a deadlock in the House. As a result, Delhi saw dirty streets and broken roads across the city, irrespective of the area one lives in.
Poor water supply, waterlogged streets and overflowing sewers also dented the party’s image.
A combative relationship between the Lt Governor and the Delhi government meant the AAP’s energies were spent in legal battles.
Among BJP leaders, Kapil Mishra is leading from the Kawaral Nagar seat by a margin of over 6,000 votes after the second round. Mohan Singh Bisht is leading by 5,700 votes after the first round of counting, and Tilak Ram Gupta from the Tri Nagar seat is leading by over 5,200 votes after the second round.
Among Aam Aadmi Party leaders, Delhi unit convenor Gopal Rai is leading by over 5,600 votes from Babarpur Constituency after the second round, and new entrant Ram Singh Netaji is leading by over 5,000 votes from Badarpur after the first round.
In Ballimaran, sitting MLA Imran Husain is leading by 476 votes after the second round.
In several seats the AAP is ahead in, the leads are under 1,000 votes, with the closest seat being Rohini where AAP’s Pardeep Mittal is ahead of BJP’s sitting MLA Vijender Gupta by 48 votes.
AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal is locked in a close race with BJP’s Parvesh Sahib Singh.
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