As votes for the 2022 Delhi MCD election are being counted, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are locked in a battle. Exit polls gave Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP, which controls the city government, a clear victory and relegated the BJP, which controls the city civic body, to a distant second. Pollsters had dismissed the hopes of Congress.
Early trends indicated a much closer fight as the day’s counting began. However, as results began to be announced, the AAP opened up a significant lead over its competitors.
The Delhi State Election Commission reported at 12.21 p.m. that the AAP had won 97 seats and was leading in 45 others, while the BJP had won 72 and was leading in 28.
The Congress has four victories and leads in five, while independent candidates and one from Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM have one victory and lead in three.
After a (contentious) re-drawing of boundaries earlier this year, the Delhi Municipal Corporation now has 250 seats or wards. The majority threshold is set at 126.
MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj of the AAP predicted that the party would win 180 to 230 seats. “We are going to get more than 180. We can reach 230 if voters support us. The mayor will be a member of our party. Exit polls, I believe, point to AAP.”
Harish Khurana, a Delhi BJP leader, told ANI: “We worked on garbage disposal (a critical issue during campaigns) and it continued even during the campaign (the pandemic). That is why we believe the BJP will be the next Mayor.”
Aaley Mohammad Iqbal of the AAP won the Chandi Mahal seat with the largest winning margin (so far) – 17,134 votes.
Seema, another Aam Aadmi Party candidate, has won the Patparganj seat with the smallest margin of victory so far in this election.
Another significant victory went to the AAP’s Timsy Sharma, who won the Jahangirpuri ward, which saw communal riots in April.
Background
The two major parties waged a heated election campaign in Delhi, with top leaders – including union ministers and state chief ministers – going door-to-door to solicit votes and public support.
The BJP has ruled the Delhi Municipal Corporation since 2007, and the AAP has led the government since 2013. Historically, the saffron party has done well in Delhi civic elections, even when defeated in the Assembly election.
This is the first election since wards were redrawn and municipal corporations merged; previously, there were 272 wards and three municipal corporations – New Delhi, South Delhi, and East Delhi – that was reduced to 250 and re-unified into one in May.
