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Purvanchal issue becomes poll flashpoint
The term refers to people from East Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and political parties believe they account for around a sixth of Delhi’s population
The fight for the powerful Purvanchali vote in Delhi gathered momentum with the Bharatiya Janata Party attacking former Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal for his comments on Purvanchalis on Thursday and Kejriwal, in turn, alleging that the BJP was getting “Purvanchali and Dalit names deleted from electoral rolls on the pretext of (getting the names of ) Rohingyas (deleted)” and questioning what the party has done for Purvanchalis.
The term refers to people from East Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and political parties believe they account for around or a little over a sixth of Delhi’s population, and have the ability to influence the outcome in 20 of the UT’s 70 assembly seats.
The slugfest began when Kejriwal and Delhi CM Atishi met the Election Commission on Thursday regarding deletions and additions to the voter list in the New Delhi assembly constituency from where Kejriwal is contesting. “All those, on whose names applications were filed to remove their votes, denied that they never filed any such application. This means there is a big fraud going on... Obviously, they are bringing people from UP (Uttar Pradesh) and Bihar to create fake votes,” PTI quoted Kejriwal as saying.
Also Read: BJP accuses Arvind Kejriwal of insulting Purvanchali voters: ‘How dare you…’
On Friday, the BJP launched a multipronged attack with BJP national president JP Nadda claiming that Kejriwal “insulted our people from UP and Bihar by calling them fake voters,” and UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath adding: “The people of UP, Bihar who live in Delhi have the same rights as Kejriwal... The lotus will bloom this time in Delhi too.”
Meanwhile, BJP leaders Dinesh Pratap Singh, vice-president of Delhi BJP, and Santosh Ojha, the head of the party’s Purvanchal cell, led the protest outside Kejriwal’s residence. Some of the protestors were detained and taken to the Mandir Marg police station. BJP MP and its popular Purvanchali face Manoj Tiwari went to the police station after this.
He said “Arvind Kejriwal has called the people of Purvanchali community dogala (double-faced). We will continue to protest and will take this agitation to every street and household in Delhi.”
A large percentage of the Purvanchali community lives in unauthorised colonies scattered across the Capital, and it is believed to have the power to influence the outcome in constituencies such as Burari, Sangam Vihar, Uttam Nagar, Dwarka, Kirari, and Vikaspuri.
Kejriwal said on Friday that : “Ten years ago, these colonies were in hellish conditions and lacked development. I want to ask the BJP what it has done for them in the last 10 years. Did they build even a single road? Did they do any development at all? They had the money; they could have done it. We made roads, provided water and sewer connections, provided hospitals and schools, and gave them a dignified life.”
He also added that the party has always fielded a significant number of candidates from the community.
In 2020, 12 of the 70 candidates fielded by the party were Purvanchalis and this time, the number is 10.
The BJP also rolled out its allies from the region to target Kejriwal.
LJP leader and Union minister Chirag Paswan said Kejriwal’s comments were “extremely condemnable and absolutely intolerable.”
“I want to ask, why Kejriwal hates Biharis so much? The people of UP and Bihar have played a major role in the overall development of the national capital... Insulting Biharis does not befit a former Chief Minister of a ruling party. The way Arvind Kejriwal has insulted the people of Purvanchal, the Aam Aadmi Party will have to face the consequences in the upcoming elections.”
JD(U) national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha too demanded an apology from Kejriwal. In a post on X, he said: “Arvind Kejriwal should not forget that Delhi is not his property, it is the Capital of the country and belongs to all... The Sheesh Mahal you have built for yourself has been made using the tax money of the people of Bihar and UP who live in Delhi... You should apologize immediately.”
Jha was referring to Kejriwal’s former residence at 6, Flag Staff Road occupied by him during his tenure as the chief minister of Delhi. The Civil Lines bungalow has been at the centre of controversy and multiple probes owing to allegations regarding exorbitant money spent in its renovation, with the BJP labelling it as “Sheesh Mahal” (shimmering palace) and centering a major chunk of its election campaign around it.
According to the BJP, Kejriwal spent upwards of ₹80 crore on the house, with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), directorate of vigilance and the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) probing the alleged violations. The AAP has rejected these claims.
