Steeped in history, Chandni Chowk constituency in Delhi is witnessing something more than a Congress and BJP fight. It is a battle between TV known face Smirti Irani, Tulsi of BJP banking on her popular TV serial image and Kapil Sibal of Congress, a legal luminary and an orator.
The constituency which includes the walled city of the national capital is likely to see a keen contest with Congress having a slight edge after it made Janata Dal-Secular candidate Shoiab Iqbal to withdraw in favour of its candidate.
Iqbal, who enjoys a considerable clout in the Muslim community in the constituency, had always played the role of a spoil sport.
In the 1999 Lok Sabha polls, BJP's candidate and Union Minister Vijay Goel polled nearly 36 per cent votes while J P Agarwal of Congress had managed 32 per cent of vote share. Iqbal took away 26 per cent of votes.
This time, as many as 15 candidates are in fray with Irani trying to remove the tag of an outsider and Sibal working hard to ensure that Muslim votes in the constituency do not split.
The Muslim votes in this constituency comprise nearly 35-40 per cent of the total electorate and the general trend in previous elections has seen that they voted almost en-block.
{{/usCountry}}The Muslim votes in this constituency comprise nearly 35-40 per cent of the total electorate and the general trend in previous elections has seen that they voted almost en-block.
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