With a triangular war in the national capital, Congress may pin its hope on the apathy of urban voters which, if not changed this elections, may become the undoing of AAP and BJP.
People in Delhi are never seen as enthusiastic lots when it comes to dragging their feet to the polling booth. But this election is going to be interesting on two accounts. One is the possible change that Delhites may bring by gong to the polling stations rather than on vacation, another is the mark that urban India will leave in the history of the country if it responds to the phenomenon of Narendra Modi or Anna Hazare.
Casting their votes in this election will be 551 transgender voters who, for the first time, will be voting under the ‘others’ category. Also eligible to vote, their health permitting, will be 159 people over the age of 100. The number high profile polling booths is more in Delhi which makes the assembly elections more interesting too.
With the record voter turnout in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhatisgarh, the Election Commission of India has crossed it fingers this time. On the eve of elections, EC had sent text messages to general public reminding them to cast their votes.
The messages from the Delhi’s Chief Electoral Office read: “Delhi goes to polls on 4 December, 2013 – Don’t forget to exercise your rights.”
Talking about the main rivalry in these assembly elections, three time chief minister Sheila Dikshit (75) from Congress is standing against BJP’s Vijender Gupta and AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal, both younger than her. However, BJP’s chief ministerial candidate is Dr Harsh Vardhan who is in the fray from Krishna Nagar seat. But records say that Dr Harsh Vardhan never lost a seat when it came to elections.
While Kejriwal with his ‘broom’ has been campaigning door to door and has been devising quite different means of wooing public, the BJP has been taking help of their prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. But Dikshit somewhere stood alone as Congress bigwigs (read Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi) addressed only a few rallies as compared to other two parties which took to the campaigning by storm.
Plus the anti-congress sentiment created by anti-corruption movement, of which AAP leaders were a part, has somehow helped BJP too gain ground in the national capital. But Congress remains the common loser in that respect.
The picture is not all rosy for Dikshit but she may pin her hopes on the apathy of the urban voters which, if not changed this elections, may become the undoing of AAP and BJP.
