The Election Commission (EC) has announced that 699 candidates will contest the elections for Delhi’s 70 assembly seats on February 5. Key deadlines included January 17 for filing nominations, January 18 for scrutiny, and January 20 for withdrawal of candidature.
New Delhi Constituency Sees Maximum Candidates
The New Delhi constituency, where former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is contesting, has the highest number of candidates at 23. Prominent rivals include BJP’s Parvesh Verma and Congress’ Sandeep Dikshit, both sons of former Delhi Chief Ministers.
On the other hand, Patel Nagar and Kasturba Nagar constituencies have the lowest number of candidates, with just five each. Constituencies like Tilak Nagar, Karol Bagh, Gandhi Nagar, Greater Kailash, Mangol Puri, and Tri Nagar have six candidates each.
Key Contenders
- Greater Kailash:
AAP’s Saurabh Bhardwaj, BJP’s Shikha Rai, and Congress’ Garvit Singhvi. - Kasturba Nagar:
AAP’s Ramesh Pahalwan, BJP’s Neeraj Basoya, and Congress’ Abhishek Dutt.
Criminal Records Controversy
The BJP has accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of fielding the highest number of candidates with criminal records. BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla stated:
“Aam Aadmi Party used to say that they do not want criminals in their assembly… But when the list (of candidates) was released, it was found that the Aam Aadmi Party has the highest number of people with criminal records—nearly 60%, followed by Congress.”
Election Trends and History
Delhi’s political landscape is heating up as polling day nears. The AAP dominated the last two elections, winning 67 seats in 2015 and 62 in 2020, leaving Congress without a single win. BJP managed only three seats in 2015 and eight in 2020.
Polling will take place in a single phase on February 5, with votes to be counted on February 8.