New Delhi:

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday launched a broadside against INDIA bloc ally and Delhi’s former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal over rising “pollution and inflation” at his first public rally for assembly elections in the national capital.

“Arvind Kejriwal had said that he would clean Delhi, remove corruption, and turn the national capital into Paris. What actually happened – one cannot move around due to pollution and inflation is rising,” Mr Gandhi said addressing his ‘Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan’ public meeting in Seelampur.

“Arvind Kejriwal had talked of removing corruption. Has he removed corruption? Pollution, corruption and inflation are on the rise in Delhi,” he said.

The AAP chief reacted to the blistering attack by the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and said while Mr Gandhi was fighting to save the Congress, “my fight is to save the country”.

“Today, Rahul Gandhi came to Delhi. He abused me a lot. But I will not comment on his statements,” he wrote on X in Hindi.

Accusing the AAP of keeping mum on the issue of caste census, Mr Gandhi promised a caste survey in Delhi if the Congress formed the government in the national capital.

The former Congress president sought people’s support to make the party victorious in Delhi, where it failed to win a single seat in the last two elections. He asserted that the party would ensure Delhi’s development as in the past under Sheila Dikshit’s government. “Neither (Arvind) Kejriwal nor the BJP can do what the Congress had done,” Mr Gandhi said.

The Congress has been highlighting the achievements of the 15-year rule under Sheila Dikshit.

In 2013, Arvind Kejriwal – a rookie politician back then – defeated the three-time chief minister in her constituency of New Delhi.

For this year’s election, the Congress has fielded Sandeep Dikshit, the son of Sheila Dikshit, against Mr Kejriwal.

The AAP and Congress have decided to go solo in the assembly elections, months after the parties fought the Lok Sabha Elections in Delhi together. Their Lok Sabha partnership ended in a debacle as the BJP won all the seven seats.

In the run-up to the Delhi assembly elections, the parties have engaged in bitter political fight, targeting each other over issues ranging from corruption and free welfare schemes, like free water, power, education, health and bus travel.

The Delhi Congress has even released a 12-point “white paper” against the AAP and BJP for mismanagement of pollution, civic facilities and law and order in the national capital.

In the 2020 assembly elections, the AAP won 62 of the 70 seats and BJP secured eight seats while Congress failed to open its account.

Polling for the 70-member Delhi Assembly will be held on February 5 and votes counted on February 8.

New Delhi:

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday launched a broadside against INDIA bloc ally and Delhi’s former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal over rising “pollution and inflation” at his first public rally for assembly elections in the national capital.

“Arvind Kejriwal had said that he would clean Delhi, remove corruption, and turn the national capital into Paris. What actually happened – one cannot move around due to pollution and inflation is rising,” Mr Gandhi said addressing his ‘Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan’ public meeting in Seelampur.

“Arvind Kejriwal had talked of removing corruption. Has he removed corruption? Pollution, corruption and inflation are on the rise in Delhi,” he said.

The AAP chief reacted to the blistering attack by the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and said while Mr Gandhi was fighting to save the Congress, “my fight is to save the country”.

“Today, Rahul Gandhi came to Delhi. He abused me a lot. But I will not comment on his statements,” he wrote on X in Hindi.

Accusing the AAP of keeping mum on the issue of caste census, Mr Gandhi promised a caste survey in Delhi if the Congress formed the government in the national capital.

The former Congress president sought people’s support to make the party victorious in Delhi, where it failed to win a single seat in the last two elections. He asserted that the party would ensure Delhi’s development as in the past under Sheila Dikshit’s government. “Neither (Arvind) Kejriwal nor the BJP can do what the Congress had done,” Mr Gandhi said.

The Congress has been highlighting the achievements of the 15-year rule under Sheila Dikshit.

In 2013, Arvind Kejriwal – a rookie politician back then – defeated the three-time chief minister in her constituency of New Delhi.

For this year’s election, the Congress has fielded Sandeep Dikshit, the son of Sheila Dikshit, against Mr Kejriwal.

The AAP and Congress have decided to go solo in the assembly elections, months after the parties fought the Lok Sabha Elections in Delhi together. Their Lok Sabha partnership ended in a debacle as the BJP won all the seven seats.

In the run-up to the Delhi assembly elections, the parties have engaged in bitter political fight, targeting each other over issues ranging from corruption and free welfare schemes, like free water, power, education, health and bus travel.

The Delhi Congress has even released a 12-point “white paper” against the AAP and BJP for mismanagement of pollution, civic facilities and law and order in the national capital.

In the 2020 assembly elections, the AAP won 62 of the 70 seats and BJP secured eight seats while Congress failed to open its account.

Polling for the 70-member Delhi Assembly will be held on February 5 and votes counted on February 8.

New Delhi:

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP candidate Atishi will file her nomination today from the Kalkaji Assembly Constituency for the Delhi Assembly polls, scheduled on February 5.

In a post on X, Atishi said that first, she would visit the Kalkaji Temple to get the blessing of Kalka Maa.
“I am going to file my nomination today. I will go to Kalkaji temple and take the blessings of Kalka Mai. Then after praying at Giri Nagar Gurudwara, I will start the nomination rally. In the last 5 years, I have received a lot of love from my family in Kalkaji. I am sure their blessings will remain with me,” she said.

आज अपना नामांकन भरने जा रही हूँ। कालकाजी मंदिर जाऊँगी और कालका माई का आशीर्वाद लूँगी। फिर गिरी नगर गुरुद्वारे में अरदास कर, नामांकन रैली की शुरुआत करूँगी।

पिछले 5 साल, कालकाजी के मेरे परिवार से, मुझे बहुत प्यार मिला है। मुझे भरोसा है कि उनका आशीर्वाद मुझ पर बना रहेगा। pic.twitter.com/xlwnPosa6G

— Atishi (@AtishiAAP) January 13, 2025

Speaking to ANI, the AAP leader targeted the BJP, accusing it of doing “Farzivada” in the Assembly polls.

“The BJP has become accustomed to winning elections through ‘farzivada’. They may have done this in Maharashtra and Haryana as well, but in Delhi, they got caught. From December 15 to January 8, there were 13,000 new voting applications in the New Delhi Legislative Assembly. It is clear that the BJP is indulging in forgery. We will not let the BJP do anything wrong. The BJP has been in power at the Centre for over 10 years, and what have they done for the Delhi people? Their only job is to abuse Kejriwal. They neither have a face for the CM nor any vision,” Atishi said.

The AAP leader is in the electoral fray against the BJP candidate Ramesh Bidhuri and Congress’ Alka Lamba for the Kalkaji seat.

Meanwhile, just six hours after asking people to fund her assembly election campaign, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi raised more than Rs 15 lakh through her online portal on Sunday.

Atishi has set a goal of garnering Rs 40 lakh as her election campaign fund, contesting from the Kalkaji Assembly constituency. As of January 10, 5:30 PM, the party’s donation page shows 278 people have donated a total of Rs 15,15,930 to her.

Earlier, Atishi turned to crowdfunding, claiming that people have donated money supporting the party’s “honest politics” and that the party does not take money from businessmen.

“People donated money to support Aam Admi Party’s honest politics. We don’t take money from big businessmen for elections. AAP government works for the common people. For my election from Kalkaji, I am launching a crowdfunding campaign for Rs 40 lakh, which I need for the election. People can donate any amount they want,” Atishi told reporters here on Sunday.

The Delhi assembly polls will be held in a single phase on February 5 and the counting of votes will take place on February 8.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, who is seeking re-election from Kalkaji in next month’s Assembly elections, on Sunday hit out at her rival BJP candidate Ramesh Bidhuri for his alleged remarks on her family made last week.

In an interview with PTI Videos, Atishi also claimed that her crowd-funding initiative launched on Sunday morning generated Rs 17 lakh in donations within just 10 hours.

Atishi, who defeated BJP’s Dharambir Singh in 2020, said she will proceed to file her nomination for the February 5 polls at the district magistrate’s office after praying at the Kalkaji temple and at a gurdwara.

On her BJP rival’s recent remarks, Atishi said, “Bidhuri has shown his character. Within 24 hours of getting a ticket, he made an indecent comment on Priyanka Gandhi. In the next 24 hours, he abused me and my family from Prime Minister Modi’s stage at a rally.” At a ‘Parivaratan’ rally of the BJP in Rohini last week, Bidhuri targeted Atishi for dropping her surname and went on to say that she “changed her father”.

“Not a single BJP leader has said that Bidhuri was wrong, or asked him to apologise to Pryanka Gandhi or me (for his remarks),” Atishi said.

“This means the BJP supports Bidhuri’s indecent language and the abuses he hurled at women. Had they not, they would have said he was wrong and asked him to apologise to Priayanka Gandhi and me. But they did not do so,” she added.

Before targeting Atishi, Bidhuri had stoked a controversy by claiming that he would make roads which are like Congress leader “Priyanka Gandhi’s cheeks” in his constituency, a comment for which he later expressed regret.

Atishi, who launched her crowd-funding campaign to contest the polls on Sunday, called the initiative an “example of honesty”.

“I need Rs 40 lakh to contest the polls which is .0005 per cent of the budget of our government. AAP is a party that never earned even a single penny dishonestly and that is why we still seek donations from the people to fight the elections,” she said.

The campaign launched at 10 am raised Rs 17 lakh by 8 pm in the form of small donations worth Rs 100 and similar amounts, which show the donors were commoners wishing to support AAP, she claimed.

“I hope the target will be met in coming days,” she said.

Amid BJP’s claims that AAP was helping illegal Bangladeshis and Rohingyas staying in Delhi to become voters to use them as vote banks, Atishi hit back by questioning the security on the borders under the BJP-led Central government.

“Amit Shah should tell from where these Bangladeshis and Rohingyas came. He is responsible for border security and stopping infiltration through the India-Bangladesh borders,” she said.

“How did the Rohingyas reach Delhi? What does it speak of the law and order and security arrangements if they managed to reach Delhi after crossing the borders and passing through many states. If Rohingyas have reached Delhi, only the BJP is responsible for it,” Atishi said.

Talking about her re-election bid from Kalkaji, she said the constituency was her “Karmbhumi” for the last five years where people considered her as their own “daughter and sister”.

Expressing hopes of getting the wholehearted support of the voters this time as well, Atishi said she developed the constituency by treating its residents like her own family.

The 70-member Delhi Assembly will go to polls on February 5. The results will be out on February 8.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

As Assembly elections draw closer in Delhi, AAP convenor and former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday accused the BJP-led Central government of reneging on its promise to provide reservation to the capital’s Jat community.

Speaking at a press conference, Mr Kejriwal said he wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding the inclusion of Delhi’s Jat community in the Central OBC list.

He also accused the Centre of misleading the community for the past decade, and failing to deliver on its promises.

“In 2015, the BJP invited Jat leaders to the prime minister’s residence and assured them that Delhi’s Jat community would be included in the Central OBC list. Union Home Minister Amit Shah promised the same in 2019. However, nothing has been done to fulfil these promises,” Mr Kejriwal said.

Drawing comparisons, he questioned why Jat students from Rajasthan benefit from reservations in Delhi University (DU), while Jat students from Delhi are denied the same.

“Thousands of children from the Jat community in Delhi are unable to secure admission in DU because they are not part of the Central OBC list,” he said.

Mr Kejriwal also alleged that despite Delhi’s Jats being recognised under the OBC category in the state, the Central government has refused to extend the benefits to them.

“This is nothing but betrayal. The Centre must include Delhi’s Jat community in the OBC list to ensure they receive reservations in Central government institutions, including for jobs and college admissions,” the AAP supremo said.

Central agencies like the MCD, DDA, and PWD operate extensively in Delhi, and including Jats in the OBC list would open up significant opportunities for them, Mr Kejriwal said, as he vowed to continue the fight until the community’s demands are met.

The 70-member Delhi Assembly will go to polls on February 5. The results will be out on February 8. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

The BJP has released the first list of its candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections in Delhi. The party has released names of candidates who would be contesting on 29 seats out of the total 70 seats in the national capital.

The Aam Aadmi Party has released the names of all the candidates that will be contesting in the Assembly elections. The elections in the National Capital are scheduled for February.

Former BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma will be contesting against former Delhi Chief Minister and AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi seat. 

Former Delhi Transport Minister, Kailash Gehlot, once a close aide of Arvind Kejriwal, left AAP and joined the BJP months before the elections, and will be contesting from the Bijwasan seat.

Ramesh Bidhuri, who was the BJP MP from South Delhi till 2024, will be contesting from the Kalkaji constituency against Chief Minister Atishi. Mr Bidhuri was not given a ticket by the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections 2024. Congress has fielded Alka Lamba from the Kalkaji constituency.

Arvinder Singh Lovely, who was a minister in Sheila Dikshit’s cabinet from 2003 to 2013, left the Congress last year and joined the BJP, he will now be contesting from the Gandhinagar seat in east Delhi. 

The Aam Aadmi Party has been in power since 2015, securing a thumping majority twice in the Assembly elections. But, in the Lok Sabha elections, AAP has failed to win a single seat since 2014 and BJP won all seven.

Yesterday, sources told NDTV that Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva will not be contesting in the upcoming Assembly elections. This came amid talks that he might be contesting in the polls.

The upcoming elections are being viewed as a fiercely contested battle between the BJP and AAP. The Congress, which was in power in Delhi for 15 straight years, has not been able to win any seat in the last two editions of the Delhi polls.

Allies in the Opposition bloc INDIA, the Congress and AAP are fighting against each other in the Delhi polls. The parties even fought separately in the Haryana elections last year.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has fielded Amanatullah Khan from the Okhla constituency in the forthcoming Delhi Assembly elections. Mr Khan, a two-time legislator, is a prominent Muslim face for the Arvind Kejriwal-led party. 

Here are five facts about Amanatullah Khan:

1) Born in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, in 1974, Amanatullah Khan’s family later moved to Delhi. Before joining the AAP, Mr Khan contested the 2013 Delhi Assembly elections unsuccessfully with the Lok Janshakti Party.

2) Amanatullah Khan joined the AAP in 2015 and was elected from the Okhla seat. The 50-year-old defeated BJP’s Brahm Singh by a margin of 60,000 votes. Soon after his election, Mr Khan was embroiled in an internal party rift between Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Kumar Vishwas. In 2017, he accused Mr Vishwas of being a “BJP agent,” which led to his suspension from the party. The suspension was lifted months later.

3) Amanatullah Khan gained prominence during the 2019-20 protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Shaheen Bagh. Although AAP distanced itself from the protests, Mr Khan participated in demonstrations.

4) Last year, he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case involving the alleged purchase of Rs 36 crore worth of land in Okhla. A Delhi court rejected the charges and granted him bail, saying the necessary approval for prosecution wasn’t obtained.

5) His earlier legal troubles included a 2022 arrest by the Delhi Police during a demolition drive in Okhla. As of 2022, 18 FIRs had been filed against him, with 10 resulting in acquittals or discharges. In May 2024, he was charged by the Noida Police for allegedly assaulting a petrol pump employee.