New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday scripted a historic victory for the BJP in Delhi Assembly elections as the party won 48 seats out of 70 seats. The PM vowed to deliver the Rs 2,500 monthly payment to women, clean the Yamuna, present the CAG report in the Assembly and fulfil Delhiites dreams with the full energy of a double-engine government.
Thanking Delhiites for trusting “Modi ki Guarantee”, he addressed voters amid a festive mood at BJP National Headquarters and promised to pay back the debt of Delhi voters by bringing the city back on track of development.
“Delhi is a gateway to the country and deserves to have the best infrastructure,” he said.
He promised to present the CAG report – expected to carry financial irregularities of the AAP government – in the first Assembly session of the BJP government, repeating his promise “Lootnewalon ko lotana padega” (The corrupt will have to pay for it).
PM Modi was stinging in his criticism of the ousted AAP, saying the BJP victory shows that there is no place for politics of lies and shortcut in Delhi.
“Shortcut wali rajneeti ka short circuit kar diya” (politics of shortcut has been short circuited by Delhi voters, he said.
PM Modi said the politics of polarisation, anarchy, arrogance and creating hurdles in development has been dumped.
“People who considered Delhi their fiefdom have been shown their place,” he said, highlighting how NDA governments in all the states have delivered development and welfare.
Mocking AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal’s antics, PM Modi said: “Governance is not a stage for publicity or gimmickry.”
PM Modi also hit out at the Congress for again landing a zero in the Assembly election.
“The Congress has scored a double hat-trick of zero – failure to win even a single seat in the last three Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Delhi,” he said.
After the historic win with a 45.56 per cent vote share, the BJP leadership remained tight-lipped about its candidate for the Chief Minister’s post.
BJP’s Delhi election in-charge Baijayant Panda announced that the next CM’s name will be announced after discussions over the next 10 days.
Throughout the day, there was speculation of giant killer Parvesh Verma, who defeated Arvind Kejriwal in the New Delhi seat, being a front-runner for the CM’s post.
However, Verma refused to confirm or deny whether he was in the race for the top post.
“The party will decide the CM’s name. I am focused on serving the people and working 20 hours a day like my father,” he said.
Meanwhile, the AAP accepted its defeat – that came after three successive wins in 2013, 2015 and 2020 – in a dignified manner, and promised to the people of playing the role of constructive Opposition.
There was no reference to EVM or electoral roll manipulation or lapses by the Election Commission that the party had raised during the campaign.
Former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said: “We are not in politics for power. We see politics as a means to serve the people. Whether in government or opposition, we will stand by the people in their joys and sorrows, helping them in any way we can.”
Chief Minister Atishi, who was the lone prominent face of the AAP who managed to win the election from her Kalkaji seat, said that the party will continue to fight against BJP’s highhandedness.
Taking to X, the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wrote, “We humbly accept the mandate of Delhi. Heartfelt thanks to all the Congress workers of the state for their dedication and all the voters for their support. This fight for the progress of Delhi and the rights of Delhiites – against pollution, inflation and corruption – will continue.”
In a related development, Lt Governor V.K. Saxena ordered the sealing of the Delhi Secretariat restricting removal of any file or computer hard disk from the office – an indication of an impending anti-corruption probe against the ousted AAP government’s functionaries.
Earlier, celebrations began early at BJP offices as vote counting trends showed that the party was storming to power after 27 years.
Party workers burst crackers and distributed sweets and shouted slogans of “Modi, Modi” outside party offices.
The celebrations continued till evening when PM Modi delivered his victory speech at the party’s national headquarters.
In the just concluded election, the turnout stood at 60.54 per cent. The BJP got 45.56 per cent vote share, the AAP got 43.7 vote share and the Congress ended up with 6.34 vote share.
In 2020, the AAP won 62 out of 70 seats with a vote share of 53.57 per cent. The BJP won eight seats with a 38.51 per cent vote share.
The Congress got 4.26 per cent of votes and others polled 3.66 per cent votes. In 2015, the AAP won 67 seats, getting 54.6 per cent vote share.
(IANS)
