AAP releases final list for Delhi polls; Kejriwal to contest from New Delhi seat

The AAP has now declared all 70 candidates for the 70 assembly seats of Delhi. It has so far dropped 20 sitting MLAs in a bid to counter anti-incumbency

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday released its fourth and final list of 38 candidates for the Delhi Assembly elections, fielding party chief Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi seat for the fourth consecutive time and chief minister Atishi from Kalkaji for the second consecutive time. The AAP has retained most of its 38 MLAs in the fourth list.

Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi chief minister Atishi. (File Photo-Sanchit Khanna/Hindustan Times)

The party has now declared all 70 candidates for the 70 assembly seats of Delhi. It has so far dropped 20 sitting MLAs in a bid to counter anti-incumbency.

In the fourth list, health minister Saurabh Bhardwaj has been fielded from Greater Kailash for the fourth time in a row, and Somnath Bharti will contest from Malviya Nagar for the fourth consecutive time.

Shoaib Iqbal will run for the Matia Mahal seat. Durgesh Pathak has been nominated again from Rajinder Nagar.

The wife of jailed AAP MLA Naresh Balyan, Pooja Naresh Balyan, has been given a ticket from Uttam Nagar.

The sitting MLA from Kasturba Nagar, Madan Lal, has been dropped and replaced by Ramesh Pehalwan, who joined the party today. Kejriwal in a press conference earlier in the day described him as a “very active social worker”.

The Congress has announced 21 candidates so far for the Delhi polls while the BJP has not yet announced a single candidate so far.

The current term of the Delhi Assembly expires on February 23 and the elections are likely to be held the same month.

In the 2020 assembly elections, the AAP won 62 seats while the BJP won the remaining 8 seats.