Vinit Wahi
With more than ten days to go for Municipal Corporation elections, the campaigning is picking up slowly but surely with most of the mainline parties mainly making use of social platforms like face book, whatsapp or twitter.
Whether it is BJP, AAP or Congress, they are engaged in making allegations and counter allegations making people to believe others are at a fault. With the BJP that has ruled corporation for three successive terms facing the anti incumbency charges, it is coming out with a video a day against AAP jailed minister Satyendra Jain facing corruption charges to deflect the incumbency factor.
The Congress though is trying its best to retrieve whatever vote bank it has lost to the AAP, seems to be on a weak wicket. The BJP, on the other hand, is hoping the more than century old party gets back its vote share to an extent that it harms AAP and benefits it to retain power in corporation for a fourth successive term.
Issues on which polls are contested include sanitation, garbage picking, corruption, pollution, inflation among others. A total 1,416 candidates are in the fray for the civic body elections in Delhi following the rejection of 1,169 nominations, official data showed. Of the 1,416 candidates, 674 are men and 742 women.
The 250-ward Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) goes to polls on December 4 while the counting of votes will take place on December 7. According to data shared by the Delhi State Election Commission, while the AAP and the BJP have fielded 250 candidates each, 439 Independents are also in the fray.
The Congress has fielded candidates from 247 wards, the BSP from 138, Samajwadi Party from one and Janata Dal (United) from 23, the data showed. The poll panel had received 2,585 nominations. However, after scrutiny of the nomination papers, 1,169 were rejected as on Thursday.