With the BJP projecting retired IPS officer Kiran Bedi as its chief ministerial candidate, the Delhi Assembly election has become a direct contest between Bedi and Arvind Kejriwal, the chief of the Aam Aadmi Party. The election, scheduled for February 7, has already started seeing hectic and fiery campaigning by all three parties including the Congress, even though it has lost much of its electoral space since its rout in 2013. Here, we take a look at five factors that seem to be working for Kejriwal and Bedi in this election. For AAP and Kejriwal: 1. Dissent in state BJP - It is no secret that the nomination of Bedi has caused severe heartburn in the ranks of the Delhi unit of BJP. This dissent and strife could work to the advantage of Kejriwal, who remains the undisputed leader of the Aam Aadmi Party. 2. Support of Dalits, slum dwellers and autorickshaw drivers - Dalits are believed to comprise around 20% of the Delhi electorate, thus forming a major chunk of votes for any party. In the 2013 elections, AAP captured 9 out of the 12 reserved seats, proving its popularity among the community. Even this time, the party would seek to nurse the aspirations of the Dalit community along with the support of autorickshaw drivers and slum dwellers to rise to power once again. 3. A clinical head-start - Kejriwal's AAP was the first party to release its list of candidates, thus giving the workers more time to establish rapport with citizens. As they say, an early bird catches the worm and AAP would like to believe that the head-start they got would work in their favour. 4. Door-to-door campaigning - The AAP's personalised style of door-to-door campaigning was credited as a major reason for the party's success in the 2013 elections. Early on in this election, workers wearing white Gandhi topis were seen combing through the city's uanuthorized colonies spreading the party word. This campaigning style, many say, could repeat success and glory for the party. 5. Clean image and strong anti corruption credentials - Last, but not the least, Kejriwal's personal credentials as a clean leader and as a fiery anti-corruption crusader remains intact in the minds of voters. He may have relinquished power last year, but voters have often showered effusive praise for his scorn for corruption. For BJP and Kiran Bedi: 1. Popularity of PM Narendra Modi: Working to the advantage of Bedi is the charisma and leadership quality of Prime Minister Narendra Modi which propelled the BJP to power in the states of Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand last year. Bedi will hope that the Modi magic will work in Delhi as well. 2. Support of middle class voters - One of the major reasons for the BJP's sweep across all 7 parliamentary seats in Delhi in 2014 was the solid support of middle-class voters who punched their ballots for BJP's good governance agenda. The largely affirmative 7 months of the Narendra Modi government has kept Delhi's middle class voters rooted to the BJP. 3. Bedi's stand on women security and experience as tough cop: Bedi's no-nonsense image as a tough cop and her strong stand on women's security keeps her in good stead as a leader of the BJP. It is this image that the party would like to harvest and highlight in its election campaign. 4. Erosion of leaders from other parties - The induction of leaders like Shazia Ilmi, Krishna Tirath, MS Dhir and Vinod Kumar Binny will prove to be fruitful for the BJP and Bedi as they each bring their own support base and experience into the party. 5. Bedi's understanding of government machinery - Bedi's knowledge of government machinery and her long stint with the police administration is likely to be an advantage in case the BJP comes to power. She has already spelt out her stand on key issues like education, police reform and women security. It is this stand which makes a marked change from Kejriwal's often 'anarchist' ideas.
