Tue 11 February 2020:
Delhi’s governing Aam Aadmi Party (Common Man’s Party or AAP) has taken a big lead over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in assembly elections, according to early trends.
The AAP is leading on more than 55 seats while the BJP is trailing with over 10 seats in the 70-member assembly.
The results show BJP’s divisive campaigning did not seem to pay off, as voters opted for incumbent Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s pro-poor poor policies.
Exits polls released on Saturday projected the AAP led by Chief Minister Kejriwal to win more than 50 seats. In the last elections held in 2015, the incumbent party won 67 out of 70 seats.
Residents on Saturday lined up in long queues across New Delhi neighbourhoods, where nearly 61 percent of the capital’s 14.7 million voters cast their ballots.
Pro-poor policies
The AAP’s pro-poor policies have focused on fixing state-run schools and providing free healthcare and bus fares for women during its first term.
The BJP was accused of running a campaign based on religious polarisation, with many of its leaders targeting the Muslim community, who form a little more than 10 percent of the capital’s population.
Commenting on the trends, BJP Delhi Chief Manoj Tiwari told reporters: “It is too early to comment on results. The party will do much better than predicted. We have to wait for some hours.”
The New Delhi election is being seen as a test of Modi’s popularity following months of deadly nationwide anti-government protests against a new Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) that saw thousands of people take to the streets daily in the capital and across India.
The law makes it easier for non-Muslim immigrants from three neighbouring countries who came to India before 2015 to become Indian citizens, a provision that forces critics to call the legislation anti-Muslim.
The CAA and a proposed nationwide National Register of Citizens have stoked suspicion that Modi wants to turn secular India into a Hindu nation, something his party denies.
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