Delhi witnessed a slow voter turnout in the early hours of polling for the assembly elections, with only 8.10 per cent of eligible voters casting their ballots by 9 am, according to the Election Commission of India.
The voting process commenced at 7 am across all 70 assembly seats in the national capital, alongside by-elections in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.
Among Delhi’s districts, North East recorded the highest turnout of 10.70 per cent, followed by South West at 9.34 per cent. In contrast, New Delhi district saw a sluggish start with just 6.51 per cent voter participation.
Other districts reported varied turnout figures, including Central at 6.67 per cent, East at 8.21 per cent, North at 7.12 per cent, North West at 7.66 per cent, Shahdara at 8.92 per cent, South at 8.43 per cent, South East at 8.36 per cent, and West at 6.76 per cent.
Meanwhile, in the Milkipur assembly constituency of Uttar Pradesh, voter turnout stood at 13.34 per cent by 9 am, reflecting a more engaged electorate. Tamil Nadu’s Erode (East) constituency reported a turnout of 10.95 per cent in the bypolls.
Polling is being conducted under strict security arrangements to ensure a smooth voting process.
The assembly elections in Delhi are crucial for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the Congress. AAP, which has been in power for two consecutive terms, is seeking re-election based on its governance track record.
BJP is aiming to reclaim power after nearly 27 years, while Congress is striving to make a comeback after failing to win any seats in the 2015 and 2020 elections.
Key constituencies witnessing intense battles include New Delhi, Jangpura, Kalkaji, Okhla, Mustafabad, Bijwasan, Kasturba Nagar, Greater Kailash, and Patparganj.
The New Delhi seat, in particular, features a high-profile contest between Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of AAP, BJP’s Parvesh Verma, and Congress’s Sandeep Dikshit, the son of former CM Sheila Dikshit.
Jangpura is another significant battleground where AAP’s Manish Sisodia faces Congress’s Farhad Suri and BJP’s Tarvinder Singh Marwah. With a total of 699 candidates contesting across 70 assembly seats in Delhi, the elections hold major political significance.
In Uttar Pradesh’s Milkipur constituency, which is reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC), 3,70,829 voters will determine the outcome. The main contest is expected to be between Samajwadi Party’s Ajit Prasad and BJP’s Chandrabhanu Paswan.
With high stakes for all major parties, the results of these elections will be announced on February 8, following the counting of votes.
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