All eyes are on Delhi voters as they are scheduled to step out of their homes on February 5 to cast their votes and seal the fate of candidates in the Delhi assembly election. In the high-profile seat of Kalkaji located in South Delhi, AAP has fielded its CM face Atishi against former BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri. Congress has trusted Alka Lamba from this constituency. All three heavyweights are contending against each other to win the trust of voters of this area. Results for the same will be out on February 8.
The New Bengal Gazette editors spoke to five reporters who have covered the campaign trails of candidates from various parties in hot seat Kalkaji for Delhi assembly election to get a sense of who has an edge in these polls.
Naiyar Azam, an independent journalist who covered the elections from the seat last week said that he observed “a saffron wave” in the constituency in favour of BJP’s Ramesh Bidhuri. He added that Congress is “nowhere to be seen” and that AAP is in “tight contest with the BJP.”
Azam, who is based in Delhi, said that he spoke to a score of voters in the area and majority of them who he spoke to- seem to be dissatisfied with the performance of Atishi. “She’s the CM of the national capital but before that she was the MLA from Kalkaji. People still face multiple issues for which they straightforwardly blame Atishi.”
What was once a Congress stronghold was taken by the Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party in 2015, and Atishi won it in 2020 by over 11,000 votes.
Quamar Equbal, another freelance journalist based in Delhi, said many voters expressed their opinion for voting in the favour of BJP. “In Govindpuri, women preferred AAP as their first choice. The auto drivers and the vendors also showed their support for Kejriwal’s party.”
He said that Atishi has a greater challenge to save her own seat which she might lose to Bidhuri this time. “In sabzi mandi, I met the vegetable seller who Rahul Gandhi had met a few days back. He said that Gandhi is a good man by heart but we shall vote for the BJP.”
According to the Chief Electoral Officer, Delhi has a total of 1.55 crore registered voters. Of these, 25.89 lakh fall under the young voters’ category, a notable portion.
Aakash Kumar, a journalist who works at Khabar Gaon and covered the constituency extensively, said that voters are making a choice on the basis of the report card of candidates. “Bidhuri is being assessed on the basis of the work he has done in the last 10 years as an MP from the South Delhi seat under which Kalkaji constituency falls. Atishi is being evaluated on the basis of work she did as an MLA in the last 5 years,” he says, adding that “Bidhuri has an edge over the Delhi CM.”
“Support in favour of Congress candidate Alka Lamba seems weak amongst voters of that area,” he argues saying “there is no impact on ground regarding Bidhuri’s controversial comments whether against CM Atishi or earlier against MP Danish Ali.”
“Bidhuri is a grassroot leader and enjoys massive support in the locality,” he added.
The Kalkaji constituency has a total of 1,94,515 registered voters. The Congress, which held power in Delhi for 15 consecutive years, has faced setbacks in the last two assembly elections and has not won any seats. Meanwhile, the AAP swept the 2015 and 2020 elections, winning 67 and 62 seats respectively, out of a total of 70.
Maaz Alam, another journalist who covered the seat, said that there is “fear of Bidhuri” in the area and hence many refused to speak on camera. “The silent voter has a major role to play. Locals didn’t open up more on the issues even though they have multiple, probably because of the fear of speaking against the BJP MP, as I got to know from a few people on ground,” he said.
He further said that “Congress’ Alka Lamba might dent AAP’s Atishi as the two are pitted against each other in a tight contest.”
Aviral Puri, a journalist based in Delhi, also spoke on similar lines and said that people were hesitant to speak. “Muscle power remains dominant and I saw a glimpse of that in the constituency,” he said, indicating that people were not willing to speak.
“The response was quite mixed among the few people I managed to speak to. The women card is at play and women seem to be in support of the AAP candidate as they felt more safe and empowered under Atishi’s rule,” he added.
From AAP’s ‘Kejriwal ki Guarantee’ to BJP’s ‘Sankalp Patra’ to Congress’ manifesto promising various things including free electricity and ‘Pyari Didi Yojana’, there is a lot that the parties have offered to woo Delhi voters. It remains to be seen who emerges victorious in this hot seat.
