Delhi used to the battleground for two major parties- Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party. However, since the introduction of the Aam Aadmi Party in 2013, things have changed. The AAP had won 67 out of 70 seats in the 2015 Assembly elections.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced the schedule for the 11th Delhi Assembly Election. Masses of electors will cast their votes on February 8, 2020, to decide who will get the chance to govern the national capital. As the countdown begins, let’s review how the major parties have been campaigning eagerly in the attempt to win the votes needed!
Is Congress Gaining Motion?
With Its recent win in five states, seems like the congress party is back on track (Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Jharkhand) but it will inevitably have to increase its vote share. To achieve this, Congress will need a tsunami in its favour in Delhi, but even a small wave is not in sight. The party leaders were seen to be present in support of the students during the JNU violence attacks, but are that all you’ve got Congress? Citizens are left thinking about this question.
In a bid to woo voters, Delhi Congress chief Subhash Chopra, declared that if his party wins the upcoming polls, it will give relief to people consuming up to 600 units of electricity. The impact of the Congress hasn’t rubbed off on the present voting generation, the new voters of today want more. Is Congress the party to deliver?
The Congress may have prevented the BJP from retaining power in the aforesaid states, but if not BJP, then the power is expected to slip to the hands of AAP, not Congress.
How reliable are BJP’s Promises?
There has been a recent decline in the support for the BJP among various Assembly elections across the country. It has lost as many as five states in the past 15 months.
The BJP had released a manifesto, which promises several financial aids and monetary benefits to the voters. Much of these promises include:
· Rs 2 lakh to each poor girl child at the time of her birth.
· Electric scooter for poor girls going to college.
· Rs 51,000 for poor widows for their daughter’s marriage.
· Free bicycles for girl students in class 9.
As far as the BJP is concerned, not much has changed for the party in Delhi politically. In the name of Modi, the party has been able to maintain its base vote in the state Assembly. With the verdict on the Ram Mandir and introduction of the CAA (as the BJP campaigns on these issues); Do you think it is enough to get additional votes for the party in this election to defeat AAP? Only time will tell.
Is Kejriwal’s Rule Threatened?
Neither the BJP nor the Congress has a strong, powerful leader who wins the hearts of the people. This is where AAP scores heavily as its leader and Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, is the undisputed ‘supreme leader’ of the party and the sole CM face. He has also wooed the poor and the lower-middle class people with evident work in the fields of education, healthcare and making electricity along with water availability at the cheapest rates in the country. With the introduction of the ‘Mohanla Clinics’, subsidising water and electricity, this party leader has really catered to the needs of the people.
CM Arvind Kejriwal said that the BJP’s manifesto has proved that it will stop facilities like free electricity and water given by the Delhi government.
“Manifesto of BJP proved that if you vote for them, then your free electricity, free water and free bus journey will be stopped. Think and vote,” he tweeted.
As AAP remains a clear favourite in these elections (According to opinion polls done in the city), the BJP has managed to earn some points in the weeks preceding the elections. Its campaign was primarily focussed on two areas:
1) Making improvements on the development started by the AAP
2) Working on the offensive on the Shaheen Bagh protests
By doing so, they shift the focus of the ruling party from development to Anti-CAA protests.
How effective is the presence of the Congress Party in this election? Can the BJP win hearts after 21 years of a dry streak? Or Will the most trusted AAP remain in power?
You Choose, You decide!
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