Delhi’s Mustafabad set for four-way electoral battle

The constituency of Mustafabad, carved out in 2008, mostly comprises low-income and middle-class families, who are primarily engaged in running factories, shops, businesses and labour work

The densely populated, riot-scarred assembly constituency of Mustafabad in northeast Delhi, is set to witness one of the most unique electoral battles of the 2025 assembly elections. Unlike the straightforward two-way fight between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dominating most of the Capital, Mustafabad stands apart — a fractured battlefield hosting a veteran, a fresh-faced newcomer, a political scion, and a controversial undertrial.

Illegally dumped garbage near a street at Shiv Vihar in New Delhi on Friday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

The BJP is fielding Mohan Singh Bisht, the sitting MLA from adjacent Karawal Nagar, the AAP Adil Ahmad Khan, a journalist-turned-politician who has been with the party since the Anna Hazare movement, the Congress Ali Mehdi, the son of popular ex-MLA Hasan Mehdi who held the seat from 2008 to 2016, and the AIMIM Tahir Hussain, who is incarcerated for his alleged role in the 2020 riots.

The stakes here are uniquely high, not just for the four parties vying for power but for residents who continue to grapple with crumbling infrastructure, economic instability, and memories of the 2020 communal riots.

Voter profile

The constituency of Mustafabad was carved out in 2008, and according to locals and political parties, it has a roughly 40% Muslim population. The constituency mostly comprises low-income and middle-class families, who are primarily engaged in running factories, shops, businesses and labour work.

There are 262,642 voters in the constituency and in the past two elections, the seat was won by AAP’s Haji Yunus in 2020 and BJP’s Jagdish Pradhan in 2015. Before that, Congress’s Hasan Ahmad won two consecutive elections.

This is the constituency where the communal riots broke out in 2020, which left 53 dead and hundreds injured. While the memories of the riots retain a strong sway, it is unlikely to be the key factor in deciding the victor, as residents grapple with issues of infrastructure, sanitation, crime control and revival of employment opportunities from the impact of the pandemic.

The candidates

BJP’s Bisht is a household name in the area, as he won assembly elections five times — in 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013 and 2020. He lost in 2015 to AAP’s Kapil Mishra, who is currently vying for the Karawal Nagar seat. Until 2008, the Karawal Nagar constituency included Mustafabad, which locals believe is an advantage for Bisht.

Bisht told HT that he banking on a blend of nostalgia and promises of development, pointing to his track record of building schools and roads.

“I have facilitated building of roads and schools in the area. But there is a dire need for infrastructure development and I will work on that. For instance, there is government land where a hospital can be built; this will help people from low-income groups. There is a drain in Shiv Vihar, which, if covered, can host a park over it; this will also solve the problem of people hosting weddings in the area... these are the real problems people are facing here on day-to-day basis,” he said.

For the AAP, Adil Ahmad Khan represents a shift in strategy. A journalist-turned-politician and longtime party loyalist, Khan has been tasked with winning back disenchanted voters after discontent with the incumbent MLA. Khan pitches himself as a fresh, relatable face focused on education, infrastructure, and safety. The son of a bank manager from Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh, he has worked as an AAP coordinator in Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. He also served as the chair of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee, Azadpur, which is Asia’s largest wholesale fruits and vegetables market.

Khan, who has been staying in Mustafabad for at least the past two years, said he wanted to bring Arvind Kejriwal’s education model to every household here. He also stressed improving infrastructure and security, citing them as planks that will ensure his win.

“The contest here is between BJP and AAP and my opponent did not get a ticket from where he was a sitting MLA because their party knew about his chances of winning are bleak. The people of Mustafabad will bring AAP to power,” he said.

Ali Mehdi of Congress offers a legacy appeal, as the son of former MLA Hasan Mehdi, whose tenure is fondly remembered by older residents. Mehdi has promised to turn Mustafabad into “South Delhi,” addressing longstanding issues like blocked drains and neglected dispensaries. “People know I can deliver. They’ve seen the years of neglect that followed my father’s time,” he said.

And then there’s Tahir Hussain, the AIMIM candidate whose candidacy has sparked widespread debate. An ex-AAP leader, Hussain is currently incarcerated for his alleged role in the 2020 riots, but he’s on parole to contest the elections. His presence adds a layer of controversy, and while some view him as a disruptor, others see him as a spoiler who may divide the Muslim vote.

Hussain’s lawyer did not respond to requests for comment.

People’s issues

Voters in the area, while admitting that they faced a tough choice among four strong options, said they want a candidate who is focused on infrastructure development.

“People are disappointed with the incumbent because of his lack of work, but believe in his party. There is another candidate who has proven his mettle in the area already. The primary contest is between the two of them. The other two candidates will only cut votes of the other two,” said 32-year-old Rohit Gupta, a businessman residing in Chandu Nagar’s Ram Wali Gali.

Anup Singh, general secretary of Dayalpur D-Block RWA, said residents were concerned about crime, dilapidated roads and poor drainage.

“This area is hugely populated. Thousands of people live in a single street and have vehicles. The roads are week and keep caving in. There are few roads which have not been fixed for years. Wine shops have opened in the area, causing nuisance and compromising the safety of women. All this needs to be change,” he said.

Fifty-two-year-old Anees Bano, a resident of Shiv Vihar, is seeking employment opportunities for her sons.

“We have still not recovered from the pandemic and riots. My son used to work in factories, but they shut, due to which they now do odd jobs. They haven’t been able to get a steady job. While there is peace at present, there is a deep-seated restlessness among communities,” she said.

Fifty-two-year-old Mohammed Aleem, a scrap dealer in Brijpuri, said that since the riots, MLA Yunus has not met victims’ families. “Not just that, he didn’t work for the area’s development. He never even visited this area. But people believe in the party. It was after we shared our disappointment that they probably decided to change the candidate who brings some hope. The BJP has also fielded a very strong candidate. Who wins, we’ll know on the day of counting,” he said.