Delhi result: AAP, BJP jostle for power, Congress hopes for redemption | 10 points

Delhi election result: Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva has claimed his party will win nearly 50 seats.

The counting of votes for the Delhi assembly election will take place on Saturday to decide if the Bharatiya Janata Party will dislodge the well-entrenched Aam Aadmi Party from power and form a government in the national capital after 27 years. Most exit polls have predicted a comfortable victory for the JP Nadda-led party. The AAP, however, hopes to win over 50 seats in the 70-strong Delhi assembly, belying pollsters' prediction.

AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi chief minister Atishi and Raghav Chadda. (Vipin Kumar/ Hindustan Times)

The Congress, on the other hand, is looking for redemption in Delhi. The party, which ruled the national capital for three terms under CM Sheila Dikshit until AAP raced to power in 2013, couldn't open its account in both the 2015 and 2020 assembly polls. If exit polls are to be believed, the future of the Congress in Delhi looks bleak as pollsters are unanimous in predicting a rout for the grand old party.

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Here are 10 points on the Delhi election result:

1. Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party won 67 of the 70 assembly seats in the 2015 Delhi assembly election. It repeated its performance in the 2020 Delhi assembly polls, winning 62 seats. A victory for AAP will establish Kejriwal's dominance in Delhi and enhance his political stature nationally. However, if the BJP wins the Delhi election, it will stall AAP's gradual growth as an alternative to the Congress.
2. Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva has claimed his party will win nearly 50 seats. The AAP has rejected the exit poll predictions, claiming it will form the government again and Kejriwal will become chief minister for the record fourth time.
3. The counting of votes will begin at 8 am across 19 stations in 11 districts of Delhi. Shahdara, Central Delhi, East, South, and Southwest districts will each have one counting station. The North, West, Northeast, and Southeast districts will each have two counting stations, while the New Delhi and Northwest districts will have three counting stations each.
4. The voting took place on Wednesday. According to the Election Commission, the voting turnout was 60.54 per cent.
5. Delhi's chief electoral officer (CEO) Alice Vaz said a total of 5,000 personnel, including counting supervisors, counting assistants, micro-observers, and supporting staff trained for the process, will be deployed on Saturday for the counting of votes.
6. The authorities will conduct a random selection of five VVPATs (voter-verifiable paper audit trails) in each constituency to ensure the fairness of Delhi elections.
7. 10000 police personnel will oversee the security of the 19 counting centres. Two paramilitary companies will be deployed at each counting centre. “We have made robust security arrangements (for counting day). Only authorised personnel will be allowed inside the counting centres, where the use of mobile phones will be strictly prohibited,” special commissioner of police Devesh Chandra Srivastava told reporters.
8. A day before counting of votes, Arvind Kejriwal courted controversy with his allegation that the Bharatiya Janata Party offered bribes to AAP candidates. Lt Governor VK Saxena later ordered an anti-corruption branch (ACB) probe into the allegation.
9. The AAP leaders have accused the BJP of trying to create an illusion in their favour based on exit poll predictions. The BJP has demanded that AAP retract its allegation and tender an apology or face legal action.
10. Kejriwal, meanwhile, told senior party leaders and candidates that AAP will form a government. At a meeting on Friday, he alleged that the opposition was using exit polls to create "psychological pressure" and attempting to execute "Operation Lotus".

With inputs from PTI