Campaign for Delhi polls ends, voting today
People in the Indian capital, New Delhi, will head to polling booths today to elect a new government after weeks of aggressive campaigning by the principal players Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), BJP and Congress who are hoping to rewrite the capital's electoral history.
Around 1.56 crore people are eligible to vote and are spread across 70 Assembly constituencies where 699 candidates are seeking the mandate. Voting will take place across 13,766 polling stations, amid a strict vigil kept by personnel of Delhi Police and other forces, including the paramilitary.
The counting of votes will be held on February 8.
AAP is seeking a third term while BJP is hoping to return to power after a gap of 27 years. Congress, which has not won a single seat since 2015, hopes to win a couple of seats and increase its vote share, which had been captured by AAP riding on an anti-corruption movement, reports Deccan Herald online.
Officials said 220 companies of paramilitary forces, 35,626 Delhi Police personnel, and 19,000 home guards have been deployed for voting. Around 3,000 polling booths have been identified as sensitive and enhanced security arrangements, including drone surveillance, have been made.
AAP is seeking a third term, BJP hoping to return to power after a gap of 27 years
Meanwhile, Election Commission of India (ECI) yesterday alleged that there were "deliberate pressure tactics to malign" the polls body in the Delhi elections after AAP accused it of indulging in "hooliganism" by not taking any action against BJP's Ramesh Bidhuri and kin for "violating" the MCC, reports TNN online.
Earlier yesterday, Delhi CM Atishi had criticised the polls body for not taking any action against Ramesh Bidhuri's family members for "violating" MCC.
During the high octane campaign, the parties had taken on each other. AAP had alleged that all its social security schemes will be stopped if BJP comes to power, a claim which it has denied.
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