Delhi Meeting polls: Can Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP pull off a hat-trick?

The stage is ready for Delhi Meeting elections. The Union Territory will go to polls on February 5, with the outcomes on February 8. Delhi will witness a three-cornered struggle that’s more likely to influence nationwide politics.

The Aam Aadmi Celebration (AAP) is vying to return to energy once more, whereas its rivals the Bharatiya Janata Celebration (BJP) and Congress are hoping to unseat it. It’s a high-stakes battle for all three events.

Let’s decode.

AAP strives for third time period

Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP is leaving no stone unturned to retain energy within the Nationwide Capital. Delhi is the place AAP was born from the India In opposition to Corruption (IAC) motion in 2012.

A yr later, the AAP ousted Congress from energy within the UT, successful 28 of the 70 Meeting seats, with a vote share of 29.49 per cent. Kejriwal fashioned the federal government with outdoors backing from the Congress. Nonetheless, his minority authorities lasted solely 49 days.

Kejriwal then went on to guide his get together to spectacular victories within the Delhi Meeting elections in 2015 and 2020, successful 67 and 62 seats, respectively.

Within the 2015 Meeting elections, the BJP managed to clinch solely three seats and a 32.19 per cent vote share and the Congress drew a clean, with a vote share underneath 10 per cent. The Kejriwal-led get together bagged an awesome vote share of 54.34 per cent.

The AAP’s seat tally declined in 2020 however the get together maintained a vote share of 53.57 per cent. It benefited at the price of Congress, which misplaced its voter base of poor and decrease middle-class electors.

Kejriwal is banking on his governance file, welfare schemes and subsidies to win the February 2025 elections.

The AAP, which is going through its hardest battle but, kickstarted its election marketing campaign months again. It has already declared all candidates for the 70 Meeting seats in Delhi. Many sitting MLAs have been dropped, whereas the seats of some akin to former deputy Manish Sisodia have been modified.

The ruling get together is contesting the polls on the face of its nationwide convenor Kejriwal, giving the election slogan of ‘Phir laayenge Kejriwal’.

Till just a few months in the past, the AAP’s senior management, together with
Kejriwal and Sisodia, was in jail on prices of corruption. Whereas AAP’s Kalkaji MLA Atishi is the Delhi chief minister, Kejriwal has iterated he’s the get together’s candidate for the highest job within the upcoming elections.

To woo voters, the AAP has promised to pay ladies Rs 2,100 month-to-month if elected again to energy. It has additionally vowed to supply free therapy for senior residents aged 60 and above in any respect authorities and personal hospitals in Delhi underneath the Sanjeevani Yojana.

The AAP can be anticipating to reap political dividends on subsidies on water and energy, and reforms in healthcare.

Nonetheless, the robust struggle from the BJP and the Congress’ aggressive marketing campaign may damage its probabilities.

If the Congress revives its scattered voter base, it may play a spoilsport for the AAP and profit the saffron get together.

For AAP, a victory for a 3rd consecutive time period would add wings to its nationwide ambitions, giving it an edge over the Congress within the INDIA bloc.

What’s at stake for BJP, Congress?

The BJP is the AAP’s primary opponent within the Delhi Meeting polls. It has not declared a CM face but and is combating the elections on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s face.

The saffron get together has remained out of energy in Delhi for greater than 20 years. Whereas the BJP has gained all seven seats in Delhi within the final three Lok Sabha elections, it has didn’t win the Meeting elections within the UT since 1998.

PM Modi has set the marketing campaign tone for the BJP in his speeches whereas inaugurating main infrastructure tasks for Delhi. Hitting out at AAP, he raised the get together’s ballot slogan: “AAP-da nahi sahenge, badal ke rahenge (We is not going to tolerate this catastrophe, we’ll convey a change).”

For the BJP, Delhi elections are a battle of status. After a diminished mandate in final yr’s Lok Sabha elections, the saffron get together bounced again within the Haryana and Maharashtra Meeting elections, successful each.

Nonetheless, Delhi has remained elusive for the BJP. The AAP is attempting to nook the saffron get together over the shortage of a CM face within the metropolis. As per Indian Specific, the BJP is counting on its voter base – higher center class, the buying and selling and Punjabi communities — and assist from a piece of Purvanchali voters to defeat the AAP in Delhi. It’s now making efforts to additionally lure the decrease center class, Dalits and the poor to ship the ultimate blow.

A triumph in Delhi would additional enhance the morale of the BJP’s cadre and take the winds out of the sails of the opposition INDIA bloc.

The Congress, which was the dominant pressure in Delhi underneath Sheila Dikshit from 1998 and 2013, is now combating for relevance within the Nationwide Capital, as per ThePrint.

The Delhi Congress unit is beset by organisational weak point and management challenges. The Grand Outdated Celebration, which is an ally of the AAP within the INDIA bloc, is contesting towards Kejriwal’s get together in Delhi. To counter Kejriwal’s monetary help for girls, the Congress has introduced Pyari Didi Yojana underneath which it is going to present a month-to-month allowance of Rs 2,500 to ladies if voted to energy.

#WATCH | #DelhiElections2025 | Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar says, “Right this moment, I’m right here to launch the ‘Pyari Didi’ scheme. I’m assured that Congress will kind the government in Delhi and we’ll present Rs 2,500 to ladies, and it will likely be determined within the very first assembly of cupboard… pic.twitter.com/ZrfchVB2g3

— ANI (@ANI) January 6, 2025

The Congress has to date introduced 48 candidates for the upcoming elections. As per Indian Specific sources, the nationwide management remains to be hoping to forge an alliance with the AAP within the Meeting polls however its Delhi unit is reluctant.

The
Congress doesn’t have a reputable face in Delhi. Whereas senior leaders of different events have hit the marketing campaign path, Congress’ Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra are but to handle public gatherings within the Nationwide Capital.

For the Congress, a humiliating defeat in Delhi would additional rub salt into its wound of dropping Haryana and Maharashtra, the states it had anticipated to win. Delhi loss can even harm its standing within the INDIA grouping.

With inputs from businesses