Bypolls for five wards will be held on 28 February; results will be declared on 3 March.
New Delhi: Ahead of the MCD bypolls, BJP leaders and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took out roadshows in support of their respective candidates. BJP national general secretary Bhupender Yadav and MP Gautam Gambhir took out a roadshow in Trilokpuri in support of MCD candidate Omprakash Gugarwal on Friday. Meanwhile, BJP national secretary and co-incharge Delhi Dr Alka Gurjar and Delhi BJP president Adesh Gupta led the roadshow in Kalyanpuri ward in support of MCD candidate Siya Ram Kanojia.
Harshdeep Malhotra, general secretary, BJP Delhi unit, told The Sunday Guardian: “In this bypoll, I want to point out Shalimar Bagh particularly. The MLA from Shalimar Bagh hasn’t done a single work, especially during the Covid times. She was completely absent in the area. The public is upset and angry. Since Renu Jaju’s death, the seat was empty for the last two years; so all the responsibility was on the candidate Sunita Mishra. It was her test and duty. But she didn’t fulfil her duties. The public has understood their lies and they will answer them in the elections. There is no development of schools, colleges, etc. The public will tell AAP that if you don’t perform, you will not win.”
On Thursday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal addressed a roadshow in Seelampur, Kondli, and Trilokpuri in Delhi. During the roadshow, he said that AAP is the only party at the state and national levels to contest against the BJP and challenge BJP.
During the roadshow, Kejriwal said: “We have the MCD by-elections on Sunday. The Aam Aadmi Party is in government for the last six years in Delhi. We have taken all measures to develop Delhi, improve schools for your children, improve hospitals for your families, made the bus rides free for women, and provided free electricity to the people of Delhi. If you vote for us, this Saturday and our councillor wins, we will work together for the development of Delhi. The Congress is being wiped off from everywhere, you must have heard about the municipal election results in Surat, Gujarat. Congress has received zero seats in Surat. The Aam Aadmi Party is the only party to challenge the BJP across the nation. Congress is the B-Team of the BJP; it has accepted its defeat in front of the BJP and only AAP is contesting against the BJP in all states. You all have defeated the BJP in Delhi thrice; it is a miracle in itself that you all have voted for AAP three times. Voting for Congress here is of no use, your vote will be wasted. Vote for ‘Jhaadu’ and make AAP win.”
On Wednesday, Kejriwal addressed a roadshow in the Shalimar Bagh and Bawana areas of Delhi. He promised Rs 100 crore for laying sewer lines in Bawana which he said was a long-standing demand of the locals. The AAP has fielded its former Bawana MLA Ram Chander as its Rohini ward candidate for the upcoming bypolls. At Shalimar Bagh, Kejriwal said the Delhi government led by AAP and citizens “together defeated corona”. He listed the initiatives taken by his government in the areas of power, water, education, healthcare, among others.
“How many of you receive zero electricity bills? 24×7 free electricity has happened only in Delhi. We have worked to improve Delhi in the last six years by improving schools, hospitals, availability of electricity, and water. But the BJP has put MCD in shambles. It is your responsibility to make AAP victorious in the MCD. Together, we have to change the face of MCD,” he said.
Meanwhile, Congress leaders are confident that the party will sweep all the five MCD wards where by-elections will be held. While addressing public meetings in East Delhi on Thursday, AICC In-charge of Delhi Congress Shakti Sinh Gohil said people want Congress back in power, as they were fed up with the corruption-ridden misrule and constant bickering between the BJP-ruled municipal corporations and the Arvind Kejriwal government in Delhi. He said that no development work, or work of any substance for that matter, had been done for the past seven years, ever since the Aam Aadmi Party came to power in Delhi, as it had only time to clash with the BJP-ruled MCDs, notorious for corruption and inefficiency.
“The by-elections will be a dry-run for the Congress’ forceful comeback in the MCD general elections in 2022,” Gohil said during the public meetings.
The bypolls for the five wards of the city’s three municipal corporations will be held on 28 February and results will be declared on 3 March.