New Delhi: Delhi, commonly called the seat of power, is not only the centre of governance, but it also settles which political party will rule from New Delhi. Historically, with just seven LS seats, Delhi has been a bellwether. The party, which won the most seats in the capital, went on to rule the country. Delhi votes on May 12. Congress suffered a major loss in the vote share in Delhi in 2014 election, a loss of 42 per cent of the votes polled, as compared to 2009 poll, when it won all seven seats.
Here are some facts:
1. Prominent candidates in the poll fray: veteran Cong leader Sheila Dikshit, who has played a crucial in the development of city; Olympian boxer Vijender Singh, who has also won international boxing events; Union minister Harsh Vardhan, Atishi from AAP, an Oxford grad who is often credited with the makeover of Delhi govt schools; and BJP’s cricketer-turned-politician Gautam Gambhir, a brute batter and expressed opinion on several national security issues.
2. East Delhi constituency: In the past, Cong has won the seat six times—HKL Bhagat 4 times and Sandeep Dikshit twice. The BJP has won the seat 6 times, including Lal Bihari Tiwari’s hat-trick. With two newcomers, Gambhir and Atishi, often reckoned as political greenhorns, and in the light of their recent public bickering, East Delhi seems to be the biggest political battle of the 7 LS seats.
3. Delhi is the decider: Delhi is not only the seat of power, but it is also the place that decides who will hold power and rule from New Delhi. In the past few elections—LS and Assembly—Delhi has oscillated from one political corner to the other, and it also reflects the mood of the nation. Since 1998, Delhi has voted for the party, which eventually, in coalition or on its own, formed the govt.
4. West Delhi constituency: Of the 7 LS seats in Delhi, West Delhi has got it right in the last 11 general elections. Since 1977, the party which won this constituency, had formed the govt at the Centre. This seat seems to gauge the voter sentiment of the country. Only Gujarat’s Valsad shares such a stature among all the 542 constituencies.
5. Delhi statehood: Since 2015 Assembly polls when AAP swept to power with 67 seats, it will be the first test of popularity of AAP’s plank of full statehood for Delhi.
6. Union Territory: All the UTs of India have an LS seat each, except for Delhi, which has 7. Delhi formally became the NCT of Delhi, after the Constitution was amended in 1991. BJP came to power in 1993, and the party’s Madan Lal Khurana became CM.
7. Only one SC seat: North West Delhi is the only parliamentary seat reserved for an SC candidate. Delhi has 12 assembly seats reserved for SCs, none for the STs.
