Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, cast his vote for the Delhi Assembly elections on Wednesday at Nirman Bhawan, New Delhi. He was accompanied by Congress’s New Delhi candidate, Sandeep Dikshit, and other party workers.
Sandeep Dikshit, contesting from the New Delhi constituency, faces a high-profile battle against former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and BJP’s Parvesh Verma. In his appeal to voters, Dikshit encouraged them to vote for a party that promises honesty, dedication, and good governance.
“I urge everyone to come out and vote. Vote for dedication, for honesty. Vote for those who can work and speak honestly to you, and who can offer a good government. Voters know which party is saying what, and I hope they will bless the right candidate,” Dikshit said.
The Congress party is striving to regain power in the high-stakes Delhi assembly polls, hoping to break its losing streak after failing to win a seat in the 2015 and 2020 elections.
In another part of the city, Congress candidate Alka Lamba, contesting from Kalkaji, cast her vote at a polling station in Madipur. Lamba called on voters to participate in large numbers, stressing that the people of Delhi are eager for change.
“Delhi’s people are excited because they want change and development. No one can stop this change now. They have seen how Delhi has gone backwards in the past 10 years. I hope the voters will come out and bring the change,” Lamba said after casting her ballot.
Voting for the 70 Delhi Assembly seats began on Wednesday morning amid tight security, with polls running from 7:00 am to 6:00 pm. The election sees hotly contested constituencies such as New Delhi, Jangpura, Kalkaji, Okhla, Mustafabad, Bijwasan, Kasturba Nagar, Greater Kailash, and Patparganj.
AAP, which currently holds more than 60 seats in the 70-seat assembly, is seeking re-election based on its previous term’s achievements. The New Delhi seat features a high-profile three-way contest, with former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal (AAP), BJP’s Parvesh Verma, and Congress’s Sandeep Dikshit (son of former CM Sheila Dikshit). In Jangpura, AAP’s Manish Sisodia, Congress’s Farhad Suri, and BJP’s Tarvinder Singh Marwah are competing.
A total of 699 candidates are contesting across the 70 assembly constituencies. Delhi has 1,56,14,000 registered voters, including 83,76,173 males, 72,36,560 females, and 1,267 third-gender voters. The electorate also includes 2,39,905 first-time voters aged 18-19, 1,09,368 elderly voters aged 85 and above, and 79,885 persons with disabilities.