Sheila Dikshit asks Delhi to vote for ex-CM, call to mind ‘vikas’

NEW DELHI: Sheila Dikshit is relying on her three terms as Delhi chief minister to help revive the party’s fortunes.

Hailed as ‘Vikas ki Devi’ (goddess of development) by supporters in her campaign in North East Delhi, Dikshit on Wednesday asked voters to remember the progress under her government.

“All the progress that you have seen in Delhi so far is because of the Congress. The others have been misleading voters in the name of development,” she said, adding that both, the BJP government at the Centre and AAP government in the city, are more interested in their own ‘vikas.’

At a rally in Babarpur, North East Delhi, Dikshit exhorted Muslim voters, saying, “Congress has treated all communities equally; we do not believe in divisive politics. Our pitch for development is for all communities.” She spoke on the Nyay minimum income scheme mooted by Rahul Gandhi.

Locals said they will vote for sanitation and better schools.

“Our area has lost a lot in the tug-of-war between the Centre and AAP... sanitation and garbage collection suffered,” said Ashwini Bhardwaj, a shopkeeper.

Mushtaq, a small businessman, agreed. “We have not seen current MP Manoj Tiwari visit the constituency even once. He has spoilt Modi’s name,” he said.

Nasim Ansari, 33, an employee at a local bakery, said his concerns were employment and better schools. Referring to the BJP’s sweeping victory and AAP’s emergence in the 2014 elections, he said, “AAP won against Congress by cutting into its vote share. This time, Muslims in this area will only vote for Sheila (Dikshit).”

The North East Delhi constituency is dotted with unauthorised colonies and slums and has a Muslim population of around 21%.

In 2014, sitting MP JP Aggarwal was defeated by Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari.

In 3-way fight, focus is on division of votes
Muslim votes may be the key to two constituencies pegged as tough fights, where the Congress and AAP have been unable to consolidate the anti-BJP vote. The Muslim vote is pegged at nearly 13% of the city population. It is highly concentrated (21%) in Mustafabad, Babarpur, Seemapuri and Old Seelampur in the city’s north-east and (16%) in Okhla, Jamia Nagar and Zakir Nagar in the east.

NORTH EAST DELHI
The Congress is banking heavily on ‘vikas ki devi’ Sheila Dikshit, who has three terms as Delhi’s chief minister under her belt. “Please think before you vote. Choose the party that believes in bringing you together, instead of dividing you,” she told a gathering in Mustafabad.

Dotted with un-authorised colonies and slums along the Yamuna, the constituency is mainly home to Purvanchali migrants, Dalits and Muslims.

Congress is focusing on its traditional support base as BJP’s Manoj Tiwari and AAP’s Dilip Pandey are both Purvanchali. “Most of the Muslim vote went to AAP in the 2015 Assembly elections. We are sure most will return to Congress as AAP has failed to fulfill its promises,” said a Congress functionary. The MCD elections in December last year saw Congress increase its tally at the expense of AAP.

Meanwhile, AAP makes it a point to mention that Congress refused to ally. “We got nearly 77% of Muslim vote. Our candidate Dilip Pandey and (party chief) Arvind Kejriwal have been meeting leaders and members of the community,” said an AAP MLA.

EAST DELHI
In wooing the Muslims, a former Congress MLA alleged that AAP’s Atishi was Jewish, urging Muslims not to vote for her. On the same lines, BJP MLA Vijender Gupta claimed AAP had misused Waqf Board funds to appease imams and muezzins in the name of an honorarium.

Meanwhile, Congress’ Arvinder Singh Lovely is targeting Sikh votes in areas such as Trilokpuri, Nizamuddin and Okhla and has urged Muslims not to vote for AAP. At a recent meeting in Nizamuddin, he said, “In the end, they (AAP) will also support a coalition, which will be headed by the Congress.” BJP candidate Gautam Gambhir is the third player in this triangular fight.