In direct fight, AAP-Cong seek to end BJP all-seat winning streak in Delhi
New Delhi: It will be a direct fight between the AAP-Congress alliance and the BJP on the seven Lok Sabha seats in the national capital.
The BJP, which won all the seats in the 2019 as well as the 2014 polls, is optimistic of repeating the feat, despite the INDIA bloc partners coming together in an attempt to end its streak.
Of the parliamentary constituencies here, New Delhi and South Delhi are the seats to watch out.
In the past these have sent prominent leaders from both the Congress and the BJP to the Lok Sabha, including former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former deputy prime minister LK Advani, Madan Lal Khurana, Sushma Swaraj and Lalit Makan.
The North East Delhi seat will see BJP’s Manoj Tiwari trying to retain it for a third time in a row. He is the only sitting MP that the party has repeated here for the polls.
The other Lok Sabha seats are Chandni Chowk, East Delhi, North West Delhi and West Delhi.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is contesting four constituencies and the Congress three as part of a seat-sharing arrangement between them.
Here is a brief profile of the key Lok Sabha constituencies of Delhi:
NEW DELHI: It is the oldest parliamentary constituency of the capital city, and has been a bastion both for the Congress and the BJP.
There are 14.81 lakh voters, including 8,08,721 men and 6,72,544 women, in the constituency -- all the 10 Assembly segments of which were won by the AAP in the last polls.
Chief Minister Kejriwal is an MLA from the New Delhi assembly segment, while two of his ministers -- Saurabh Bhardwaj and Raaj Kumar Anand -- are legislators from Greater Kailash and Patel Nagar falling under this constituency.
New Delhi’s Lutyens’ Delhi area is known for its tree-covered wide streets and sprawling bungalows of central ministers, MPs, members of the judiciary and high-ranking military and government officials, besides the Parliament, the President’s House and the India Gate, among other structures.
The constituency also has many central government residential colonies.
SOUTH DELHI: It is the fourth largest Lok Sabha constituency in the national capital in terms of number of voters after West Delhi, North West Delhi and North East Delhi.
Its around 22.21 lakh voters, including 12.34 lakh men and 9.86 lakh women, live mostly in villages and unauthorised colonies.
It was last won by the Congress in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.
NORTH EAST DELHI: With nearly 23.81 lakh voters, including 12.87 lakh men and 10.93 lakh women, the third largest constituency in the national capital has a large population of migrants from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand.
The BJP has repeated its sitting MP Manoj Tiwari, a
popular Bhojpuri singer and actor, from the seat, particularly for his connect with the majority Bhojpuri-speaking Purvanchali people of the area.
Voting in Delhi’s seven Lok Sabha seats will take place on May 25, the sixth phase of the general elections, with 1.47 crore people
eligible for exercising their franchise, according to the poll schedule announced by the Election Commission on Saturday.
