New Delhi: Delhi recorded 60.10 per cent voter turnout in the assembly polls on Wednesday amid charges of malpractices including money distribution and fake voting by both AAP and BJP who are engaged in an intense battle to decide who rules the national capital.
The turnout almost touches what it was in the 2020 assembly polls (62.59 per cent) when the Arvind Kejriwal-led party won 62 seat of the 70 seats, while the BJP got eight and the Congress zero.
Long queues of voters were witnessed outside polling stations in different constituencies since early morning, and there were people still waiting after the scheduled time of close at 6 pm.
Exit poll results started coming in soon afterwards, with several of them predicting a victory for the BJP over the ruling AAP, while the Congress was projected to suffer yet another rout.
The Election Commission’s voter app, last updated at 10.50 pm, showed 60.10 per cent votes were cast. There are 1.56 crore eligible voters in Delhi and the percentage will go up as officials update the figures from all the 13,766 stations.
“All 70 Assembly constituencies of Delhi went to polls today in a peaceful and festive atmosphere. Voters were delighted with the seamless polling process and facilities at the polling stations,” an official statement of ECI said. “All voters in the queue after formal closing hours of polling i.e. 6 pm are allowed to cast their vote,” the statement said.
Polling booths across the city daubed themselves with colours and hung posters of celebrities bearing special messages to give the voters an impression of a true festive spirit. One such poster bore the image of Lata Mangeshkar, while several others depicted paralympians.
A total of 699 candidates are engaged in a keen battle that would decided whether the AAP comes to power in Delhi for a fourth term or the BJP gets a chance to form a government in the national capital after 27 years. The Congress also made all-out effort to regain its foothold in the city politics.
President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, Union ministers S Jaishankar and Hardeep Singh Puri, Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal were among the early voters.
After casting his vote at a polling booth in Moti Bagh, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said everyone has worked very hard for the smooth conduct of polls.
During the day, the Aam Aadmi Party and BJP indulged in an intense blame game, accusing each other of voting malpractices in different constituencies.
Delhi Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) told PTI around noon that the polling process was going on “smoothly”. Some EVMs were replaced during mock polls and actual voting also, the CEO said.
High drama unfolded in Seelampur when a BJP leader alleged that some people wearing burqas were attempting fraudulent voting. However, police denied any fake voting in the area. In Kasturba Nagar, police sources said two men allegedly attempted to vote fraudulently. They have been apprehended and were being interrogated, they said.
Following allegations of fake voting by the BJP in Seelampur, AAP workers resorted to sloganeering. The Delhi Police, however, dismissed the charges of fake voting, and said there was enough security deployment in the area including personnel from the paramilitary forces.
In Delhi’s Majnu-ka-Tilla, Pakistani Hindu refugees, who got Indian citizenship following implementation of Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, cast their votes for the first time in India.
First timers, elderly, transgenders and women enthusiastically exercised their franchise in the elections to form a new government.
At least six exit polls predicted a BJP victory, while two said the AAP would retain power. Two other polls showed a close contest between them, with an edge for the BJP.
AAP national spokesperson Reena Gupta rejected the exit poll results, saying the party will again form the government in Delhi and Arvind Kejriwal will become the chief minister fourth time in a row.
Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva asserted that party’s victory will be more spectacular then what the exit polls showed.
After casting his vote along with his family members, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal appealed to the people of Delhi to exercise their franchise for “good schools, hospitals and development of the city”.
Kejriwal, who is contesting from the New Delhi seat for the fourth time in a row, is pitted against the BJP’s Parvesh Verma and Congress’ Sandeep Dikshit, in a keen contest.
“My parents have health issues but they were very excited about voting since morning,” Kejriwal told reporters. His wife Sunita Kejriwal and son Pulkit Kejriwal also accompanied him to the polling station.
Hopefully people will vote for “those who work”, Kejriwal said. His wife Sunita Kejriwal said people are “very intelligent” and will make the right choice.
“They won’t tolerate hooliganism,” she said.
The BJP is making an aggressive push to reclaim Delhi after over 25 years, with its campaign focusing on issues like corruption, governance failures, and law and order.
