Don’t be surprised if you spot a politician from another part of the country campaigning in the streets of Delhi. It’s election season in the capital and no party is taking it lightly. Even as the Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party have locked horns for the lead, the Congress is still trying to stay relevant, and the Communist Party of India is trying to establish a presence.
While prominent leaders routinely campaign for national elections, it is rather unusual to see national figures campaigning in state assembly polls. As polling date, February 7, is fast approaching, nervous parties have summoned leaders from all parts of the country to come and gather votes through their star power in the national capital.
Punjab Secretariat in Delhi
The elections in Delhi have cast a shadow on the functioning of the Punjab assembly, as most ministers have been summoned by their respective party's high-command to camp in the capital until the polls get over.
All of Punjab Bhawan, the state guesthouse in the capital, has reportedly been booked for these ministers until February 5, the last day of campaigning. On January 29, the secretariat in Chandigarh was empty except for Food and Civil Supplies’ Minister Adesh Partap Singh Kairon and Agriculture Minister Tota Singh who showed up while their colleagues were possibly gathering votes in someone else’s constituency in Delhi.
The Aam Aadmi Party, for its part, also flew down all four of its MPs from Punjab to campaign in the capital. The drug menace in the state is being used as a background theme in their campaign to woo the Punjabi population in Delhi.
"We are trying to make them [Punjabi voters] understand that they will face the same problem here if they allow the BJP-SAD alliance to come to power in Delhi,” said Bhagwant Mann, AAP MP from Sangrur. "They will also make Delhi like Punjab" in terms of drug trade.
All the big guns
The Congress has deployed all its big guns on the campaign trail. Many current and former chief ministers, governors and leaders from the country have addressed rallies in the capital. Seven senior leaders of the party are monitoring 10 assembly seats each. Among those entrusted with this task are Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
The Congress is not giving up on its film personalities either. Actor-turned-politician Khushboo from Tamil Nadu is touring the city in mobile vans and speaking impeccable Tamil at the top of her voice to collect votes for the party. She has visited localities with a substantial Tamil presence, such as Wazirpur, JJ Colony, RK Puram, Noida and Janakpuri.
Former union ministers including Salman Khurshid, C P Joshi, Anand Sharma and Pawan Kumar Bansal have also been deployed to keep a close watch on the party’s campaign in constituencies in northern and eastern parts of the city.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, however, ppears to be more aware of the need to pack in more action than the others.
Wooing migrants
On the job to court Tamilians is Pon Radhakrishnan, the lone minister from Tamil Nadu who reportedly called a meeting of 100 influential community members to his residence on Saturday so that they can collect votes in the areas dominated by Tamils in Delhi. Some estimates peg the population of Tamils at 15 lakh in Delhi, which is a big enough vote bank, particularly as the opinion polls predict the elections to be closely contested.
Meanwhile, tribal affairs minister Jual Oram is on a meeting spree. He is canvassing the city and greeting people hailing from Jharkhand and Odisha. "We are addressing people from our community, those who are working as helps and maids besides plumbers and other section of the society," Oram told the Times of India. "The response is very good."
These regional leaders are being brought in to supplement top union ministers also who are busy holding rallies and press conferences. The list includes Arun Jaitley, M Venkaiah Naidu and Ravi Shankar Prasad who are taking time out of their portfolios to attack AAP in rallies and pitch for a “stable” government.
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While prominent leaders routinely campaign for national elections, it is rather unusual to see national figures campaigning in state assembly polls. As polling date, February 7, is fast approaching, nervous parties have summoned leaders from all parts of the country to come and gather votes through their star power in the national capital.
Punjab Secretariat in Delhi
The elections in Delhi have cast a shadow on the functioning of the Punjab assembly, as most ministers have been summoned by their respective party's high-command to camp in the capital until the polls get over.
All of Punjab Bhawan, the state guesthouse in the capital, has reportedly been booked for these ministers until February 5, the last day of campaigning. On January 29, the secretariat in Chandigarh was empty except for Food and Civil Supplies’ Minister Adesh Partap Singh Kairon and Agriculture Minister Tota Singh who showed up while their colleagues were possibly gathering votes in someone else’s constituency in Delhi.
The Aam Aadmi Party, for its part, also flew down all four of its MPs from Punjab to campaign in the capital. The drug menace in the state is being used as a background theme in their campaign to woo the Punjabi population in Delhi.
"We are trying to make them [Punjabi voters] understand that they will face the same problem here if they allow the BJP-SAD alliance to come to power in Delhi,” said Bhagwant Mann, AAP MP from Sangrur. "They will also make Delhi like Punjab" in terms of drug trade.
All the big guns
The Congress has deployed all its big guns on the campaign trail. Many current and former chief ministers, governors and leaders from the country have addressed rallies in the capital. Seven senior leaders of the party are monitoring 10 assembly seats each. Among those entrusted with this task are Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
The Congress is not giving up on its film personalities either. Actor-turned-politician Khushboo from Tamil Nadu is touring the city in mobile vans and speaking impeccable Tamil at the top of her voice to collect votes for the party. She has visited localities with a substantial Tamil presence, such as Wazirpur, JJ Colony, RK Puram, Noida and Janakpuri.
Former union ministers including Salman Khurshid, C P Joshi, Anand Sharma and Pawan Kumar Bansal have also been deployed to keep a close watch on the party’s campaign in constituencies in northern and eastern parts of the city.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, however, ppears to be more aware of the need to pack in more action than the others.
Exclusive pic of BJP ministers coming to campaign in Delhi pic.twitter.com/Hlw8mAjEAH
— Micro-ambitious (@pal36) January 29, 2015Wooing migrants
On the job to court Tamilians is Pon Radhakrishnan, the lone minister from Tamil Nadu who reportedly called a meeting of 100 influential community members to his residence on Saturday so that they can collect votes in the areas dominated by Tamils in Delhi. Some estimates peg the population of Tamils at 15 lakh in Delhi, which is a big enough vote bank, particularly as the opinion polls predict the elections to be closely contested.
Meanwhile, tribal affairs minister Jual Oram is on a meeting spree. He is canvassing the city and greeting people hailing from Jharkhand and Odisha. "We are addressing people from our community, those who are working as helps and maids besides plumbers and other section of the society," Oram told the Times of India. "The response is very good."
These regional leaders are being brought in to supplement top union ministers also who are busy holding rallies and press conferences. The list includes Arun Jaitley, M Venkaiah Naidu and Ravi Shankar Prasad who are taking time out of their portfolios to attack AAP in rallies and pitch for a “stable” government.
