The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is leading in 48 seats in the 70-member legislative assembly, while the incumbent Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is ahead in 22 seats, according to data from the Election Commission of India (EC). Given Delhi’s symbolic importance as the nation’s capital, the election was a contest of prestige for both parties, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party appears poised to form the government in the Indian capital as votes are counted following a fiercely contested election.
Securing Delhi would be more than just an electoral victory for the BJP, which has had recent election successes in other states like Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. The party, which has been out of power in the nation’s capital since 1998, has thrown resources at the Delhi campaign, with Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah attending events. The AAP has led the city, a federally administered territory, since 2013, and voters have supported its strong record of welfare. However, the party and its leaders have recently been involved in corruption allegations, which they have denied.
Voters shifted to the AAP when the party, which ruled Delhi from 1998 to 2013, was overthrown due to accusations of corruption. It hasn’t left an impression since.
More than 60% of eligible voters cast their ballot in the poll this time. Even though these forecasts have failed in the past, the bulk of exit polls indicated that the BJP would win an absolute majority and more than 35 seats.
Delhi has a distinct system of government. The federal government appoints the lieutenant governor (LG), who makes important decisions pertaining to land, public order, and law enforcement. The state legislature is in charge of issues pertaining to public services, health, and education.
The power structure is also the reason why the election campaigning in Delhi is more focused on welfare than on political or identity issues, which are more important in elections elsewhere in the country. The AAP and BJP campaigns both promised cash handouts to women, improvements to public schools, and free healthcare services. Meanwhile, the BJP hoped for a boost from last week’s federal budget, which slashed income tax for the salaried middle class, a key voting bloc in the capital. This division has frequently caused friction between the federal government and state legislature when they are run by rival parties.
Experts think that a BJP triumph in politically critical Delhi will cement Modi’s popularity among Indian voters after his party lost its outright majority in last year’s national election.
A defeat would also represent a significant blow to the AAP, a much smaller party which was acclaimed in its early years in office for focusing on improving education and health facilities in the city. Maintaining Delhi would have been a significant victory for the struggling party, which now faces an unclear future, even if it is also in control in Punjab state.
A large portion of the BJP campaign was directed at anti-graft activist Arvind Kejriwal, the leader of the AAP, who was imprisoned last year in connection with a corruption case over a now-scrapped alcohol sales policy.
The Supreme Court’s bail conditions prohibit Kejriwal from entering the chief minister’s office or signing files, and he claims that Modi’s party is pursuing a “political vendetta” against him and the AAP. Kejriwal resigned from his position days after being released from prison. The bitter, weeks-long campaign to win the capital was heavily focused on welfare facilities for its residents, but one issue was left off the agenda: Delhi’s ongoing air pollution crisis, which affects the city of over 30 million people for a large portion of the year.
Although other parties mentioned the crisis in their manifestos and the BJP pledged to cut the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) in half by 2030 if it wins, the topic did not become a talking point or dominate conversations during the election campaign.