The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday announced its first list of 11 candidates for the Delhi Assembly elections, which will be held early next year. This list prioritises individuals who recently joined the AAP from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress. Out of the 11 candidates, six are defectors.
The party has also dropped its three incumbent MLAs – Gulab Singh from Matiala, Abdul Rahman from Seelampur and Rituraj Jha from Kirari. The party defended the decision, saying it is based on poor survey results.
The new candidates from other parties include B.B. Tyagi from Laxmi Nagar, Anil Jha from Kirari and Brahm Singh Tanwar from Chhatarpur, who recently left the BJP to join the AAP.
Similarly, Somesh Shaukeen who has got ticket from Matiala, Veer Singh Dhingan from Seemapuri and Zubair Chaudhary from Seelampur were former Congress members.
Despite the fact that the official notification for the elections has not yet been released, the announcement of candidates has raised questions – why the AAP chose to move so quickly. Senior journalist Aditya Menon told Outlook, "The early declaration of candidates – especially in constituencies where the AAP is weaker – is a strategic move by Arvind Kejriwal."
He said the AAP wants to take the BJP head on in the latter's bastion; and therefore, it has relied on the saffron party's defectors.
"Take Badarpur for an instance, it's traditional stronghold of the BJP. By fielding Ram Singh, who enjoys support of his electorate, the AAP aims to put up a strong fight for the BJP. On the other hand, at some seats, the party has attempted to do a course correction by changing the candidates as the feedback of the incumbent MLAs in the regions were not good enough. That's why, the AAP took senior Congress leader Matin Choudhury in its fold and fielded his son from Seelampur - replacing its incumbent MLA," he explained.
Of the 11 announced seats, six are currently held by the BJP. It includes Badarpur, Karawal Nagar, Ghonda, Rohtas Nagar, Vishwas Nagar and Laxmi Nagar.
He suggested that the early announcement would allow AAP candidates more time for campaigning and will help avoid confusion closer to election time. “It sends a clear message to voters about who their candidates are and allow AAP to start door-to-door campaigns early – particularly in BJP strongholds,” said Menon.
He said the AAP is known for announcing its candidates early. It had done the same in the 2015 and 2020 Delhi Assembly polls – where it secured a decisive victory. In 2015, the party won 67 out of 70 seats, while the BJP secured only three. In 2020, it won 62 seats and the BJP managed to bag 8.
The 11 candidates named in AAP’s first list are:
1. Brahm Singh Tanwar (Chhatarpur)
2. Anil Jha (Kirari)
3. Deepak Singhal (Vishwas Nagar)
4. Sarita Singh (Rohtas Nagar)
5. B.B. Tyagi (Laxmi Nagar)
6. Ram Singh (Badarpur)
7. Zubair Chaudhary (Seelampur)
8. Veer Singh Dhingan (Seemapuri)
9. Gaurav Sharma (Ghonda)
10. Manoj Tyagi (Karawal Nagar)
11. Somesh Shaukeen (Matiala)
