Delhi Election 2020: Arvind Kejriwal still holds the edge despite BJP’s shrill Shaheen Bagh campaign

Mangalore Today News Network / Yahoo

New Delhi, Feb 04, 2020:   The ruling Aam Aadmi Party under Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is set to return to power for a second consecutive full term in the Delhi Assembly elections 2020, a Times Now-IPSOS opinion poll has shown.

The findings of the survey come as a reality check for the Bharatiya Janata Party which is hoping to turn its fortunes in the national capital where it has been unable to win elections since 1993. The BJP, under the leadership of Home minister Amit Shah, has trained much of its focus on the protests at Shaheen Bagh against the recently passed Citizenship Amendment Act, the National Population Register and the proposed National Register of Citizens.

As per the Times Now-IPSOS survey, the Aam Aadmi Party is slated to win around 54-60 of the total 70 Assembly constituencies, a marginal drop from the 67 seats it won in the 2015 elections. The BJP, on the other hand, is expected to pocket 10-14 seats, and the Indian National Congress, 0-2 seats, the survey predicts.

While the AAP started as the clear favourite in these elections, the BJP has managed to make some gains in the weeks preceding the elections. Its campaign has largely focussed on a two-pronged strategy. While on one hand, it has concentrated on debunking the development plank that the AAP has sought to seek mandate on, on the other, it has strategically ramped up the offensive on the Shaheen Bagh protests, almost leaving the ruling party little room but to shift the narrative from development to the anti-CAA protests.

Yet, in terms of vote share, the BJP’s gains do not appear to be translating into a significant loss for the AAP. According to the survey findings, AAP could still go on to win around 52 percent of the votes, a marginal drop from the 54.3% votes it garnered the last time when it swept the elections. As per the survey, the BJP could finish second with 34% votes, an increase from the 32.2% popular votes it pocketed in the 2015 Delhi Assembly elections. The Congress is set to remain a distant third, securing about 4% percent votes. It had failed to secure a single seat in the last elections.

The Delhi Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in a single phase on February 8 and the counting of votes will be held on February 11.