Amidst the prevailing intense summer warmth, Delhi is primed for voting on Saturday following an extensive two-month campaign, with the BJP and the INDIA coalition partners engaged in a direct, head-to-head competition across all seven Lok Sabha constituencies.
The INDIA coalition partners have reached a pre-election understanding for the Delhi elections. While the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is vying for four seats, the Congress has nominated candidates for the remaining three.
This marks the inaugural Lok Sabha election where the AAP and the Congress have jointly fielded candidates against the BJP, posing a formidable challenge to the ruling party at the Center.
A total of 1.52 crore eligible voters, comprising 82 lakh males, 69 lakh females, and 1,228 individuals identifying as the third gender, are set to exercise their voting rights at over 13,000 polling booths across 2,627 locations spanning the seven constituencies.
Voting will commence at 7 am with special provisions at polling stations to facilitate voters amidst the sweltering heat. The meteorological department has issued a cautionary yellow alert for polling day, with the mercury expected to soar to around 44 degrees Celsius.
Over 2.52 lakh first-time voters are poised to cast their inaugural ballots in the city’s elections. The electoral landscape in Delhi witnessed significant upheavals, with the BJP replacing six of its seven incumbent MPs with new faces, and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) constituents forging a seat-sharing pact.
The AAP encountered a significant setback when its national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was apprehended by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case, barely a week after the election announcement on March 21.
After a span of 50 days, Kejriwal secured interim bail from the Supreme Court to resume campaigning. Emerging from Tihar on May 10, he galvanized his party cadre and supporters through an extensive city-wide tour, comprising road shows and public gatherings in support of not only AAP candidates but also its ally, the Congress.
The AAP has nominated Kuldeep Kumar for the East Delhi seat, Mahabal Mishra for West Delhi, Somnath Bharti for New Delhi, and Sahi Ram Pahalwan for South Delhi. The Congress has fielded J P Agarwal for Chandni Chowk, Kanhaiya Kumar for North East Delhi, and Udit Raj for North West Delhi.
The BJP’s slate includes Manoj Tiwari for North East Delhi, the sole incumbent MP from Delhi fielded by the party once more; Ramvir Singh Bidhuri for South Delhi, Bansuri Swaraj for New Delhi, Harsh Deep Malhotra for East Delhi, Yogendra Chandolia for North West Delhi, Praveen Khandelwal for Chandni Chowk, and Kamaljeet Sehrawat for West Delhi.
The BJP, which clinched all seven seats in Delhi in 2014 and 2019 with substantial margins, is geared up for a triumphant hat-trick. “The people of Delhi place immense faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Viksit Bharat,’ and the BJP is poised to reclaim all seven seats with even greater margins than in 2019,” asserted Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva.
Kejriwal has reiterated his conviction that the BJP will be ousted from power following the declaration of Lok Sabha poll results on June 4, with INDIA coalition candidates triumphing in all seven Delhi constituencies.
The West Delhi constituency, boasting 25.87 lakh votes, stands as the largest Lok Sabha constituency in the national capital, while the New Delhi constituency, with 15.25 lakh votes, ranks as the smallest. North West Delhi constituency stands as the lone reserved seat among the seven.
A host of dignitaries and prominent figures, including President of India Droupadi Murmu, Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, are also among the city’s electorate. A robust security apparatus comprising 60,000 personnel has been deployed to ensure peaceful, transparent polls, as per Delhi Police officials.
In light of security imperatives, 51 paramilitary force units and 13,500 home guards from Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh, alongside drones and CCTV cameras, will fortify the arrangements. Approximately 33,000 police and paramilitary personnel will be stationed at polling centers, including 429 identified as sensitive locations, according to a senior Delhi Police official.
With 13,637 polling stations, including four auxiliary stations (including 2,891 critical ones), in Delhi, 70 pink booths operated exclusively by female officials will be established. Additionally, 70 model polling booths will be set up, they affirmed.
Delhi CEO P Krishnamurthy underscored that comprehensive measures have been implemented in anticipation of intense heat, with temperatures forecasted to reach 44 to 45 degrees Celsius, in compliance with directives from the Election Commission and the IMD. “Our preparations are comprehensive. Shaded areas will be designated at all polling stations, featuring fully covered waiting zones equipped with coolers and fans to ensure voter comfort. We have also ensured the availability of drinking water, restrooms, ramps, and wheelchairs at every polling station under the Assured Minimum Facility Policy to minimize voter inconvenience,” he elaborated.
The national capital witnessed fervent campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls, with the Prime Minister rallying support for the BJP and its candidates at two election rallies.
Key BJP campaigners, including party chief J P Nadda, Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, and Piyush Goyal, among others, as well as chief ministers from BJP-ruled states, such as Yogi Adityanath of UP, Himanta Biswa Sarma of Assam, Pushkar Singh Dhami of Uttarakhand, Pramod Sawant of Goa, and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, among others, canvassed for party candidates.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi held three public meetings in support of party candidates. Moreover, Kejriwal, accompanied by his wife Sunita Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, and Delhi government ministers Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj, Gopal Rai, and Kailash Gahlot, campaigned for AAP candidates.
