The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced its first list of candidates for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections 2025 in Delhi. The list includes 29 candidates out of the total 70 seats in the national capital. The elections are scheduled to take place in February.
Former BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma will contest from the New Delhi seat against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Speaking about his candidacy, Verma said, “I thank my party’s top leadership… I hope that the trust that the party has shown in me, I’ll live up to it. When Delhi was facing COVID-19 and needed oxygen, Arvind Kejriwal Ji was distributing a ‘free bottle on every bottle.’ There are many works in Delhi, like cleaning Yamuna and curbing pollution. When the BJP forms the government, we will do all these works.”
ALSO READ: ‘House worth Rs 2,700 crore, suit worth Rs 10 lakh’: Kejriwal reacts to PM Modi’s ‘AAPda’ jibe
Kailash Gehlot, a former Delhi Transport Minister and once a close aide of Arvind Kejriwal, has switched sides to the BJP. He will contest from the Bijwasan seat. Gehlot’s defection to the BJP has been viewed as a significant development in Delhi politics ahead of the elections.
Ramesh Bidhuri, previously a BJP MP from South Delhi, will run from the Kalkaji constituency. This move pits him against Chief Minister Atishi of AAP. Bidhuri was not given a ticket by the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, leading to criticism from Atishi. “Ramesh Bidhuri was an MP for 10 years, but his party did not trust his work and did not give him a Lok Sabha ticket, then how will the people of Kalkaji trust his work?” she said.
Responding to her comments, Bidhuri stated, “I thank the BJP leadership for showing trust in me to reclaim the Kalkaji assembly seat. Delhi is suffering because of Arvind Kejriwal. The people of Kalkaji have also faced ‘AAPda’ under Chief Minister Atishi.”
ALSO READ: PM Modi’s ‘sheeshmahal’ jibe at Arvind Kejriwal ahead of Delhi polls
Another notable BJP candidate is Arvinder Singh Lovely, who previously served as a minister in Sheila Dikshit’s cabinet. Lovely left the Congress last year to join the BJP and will now contest from the Gandhinagar seat in east Delhi.
AAP and Congress Prepare for the Contest
The Aam Aadmi Party has released the names of all its candidates for the Assembly elections, seeking a third consecutive term in power. Despite their dominance in the Assembly since 2015, AAP has not managed to secure a single Lok Sabha seat since 2014, with the BJP sweeping all seven seats in Delhi.
Congress, which governed Delhi for 15 years under Sheila Dikshit, continues to struggle to regain its foothold. The party has not won any seats in the last two Assembly elections. Congress has fielded Alka Lamba in the Kalkaji constituency, where she will face off against Bidhuri and Atishi.
Political Dynamics and Alliances
The elections are shaping up to be a fierce battle between BJP and AAP, with Congress also in the fray. Notably, allies in the Opposition bloc INDIA, AAP, and Congress are contesting against each other in Delhi. This mirrors their approach in the Haryana elections last year, where the two parties also competed separately.
Sources have confirmed that Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva will not contest in the elections, contrary to earlier speculations.
