In a key announcement on Tuesday, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar revealed the official schedule for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. The elections will be held on February 5, 2025, and the counting of votes will take place on February 8, 2025.
Addressing the media in New Delhi, Mr. Kumar confirmed that at 2 PM, the Election Commission would announce the full details of the election schedule, including dates, procedures, and other crucial information about the election process. The announcement comes amid growing anticipation over how the election process will unfold in the capital, with significant attention on potential voter fraud and irregularities in the voter list.
Background of Delhi’s 2020 Assembly Elections
The previous Delhi Assembly election in 2020 saw a resounding victory for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), led by Arvind Kejriwal, which won 62 seats. The party secured 53.57% of the total valid votes cast. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won just 8 seats, with 38.51% of the total votes. Congress, on the other hand, failed to win any seats and garnered just 4.26% of the votes.
The BJP’s victories were in constituencies such as Rohini, Badarpur, Laxmi Nagar, and several others. Despite the losses, the BJP maintained a presence in certain parts of Delhi, reflecting their continued influence within the capital. However, concerns over voter fraud have surfaced again ahead of the 2025 elections.
Arvind Kejriwal Accuses Large-Scale Voter Fraud in New Delhi
Ahead of the upcoming elections, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has raised alarm over what he calls large-scale fraud in voter additions and deletions in the New Delhi Assembly constituency. In a post on social media platform X, Kejriwal highlighted a letter written by Delhi’s Education Minister Atishi to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), urging urgent attention to what she called a significant surge in voter addition and deletion applications.
According to CM Atishi’s letter, from October 29, 2024, to January 2, 2025, a total of 13,276 Form-6 (for voter additions) and 6,166 Form-7 (for deletions) were submitted. Atishi pointed out that this surge accounts for 5.77% of the total votes in the New Delhi Assembly, well above the 2% threshold that requires personal verification of deletion requests by the Election Registration Officer (ERO).
The Chief Minister has expressed concern that if such high numbers of deletions are not properly verified, they could have a significant impact on the fairness and transparency of the election process.
Key Dates for Delhi Elections 2025
- Election Date: February 5, 2025
- Counting Date: February 8, 2025
The Election Commission is closely monitoring the situation, with Mr. Kumar emphasizing the transparency and fairness of the electoral process, including stringent measures for the verification of voter data.
With the election dates now set, all eyes are on how the electoral process will unfold, especially regarding the allegations of voter list fraud. The Delhi Assembly elections will be closely watched as an indicator of the political landscape in the capital, especially given the high stakes for all political parties involved.
