BJP returns to power in Delhi after 27 yrs; Kejriwal loses New Delhi seat

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has secured a decisive victory in the Delhi Assembly elections, winning 40 seats, while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has managed to claim 19. The results, announced on Saturday, signal a major political shift in the capital, with the BJP set to return to power after 27 years.

AAP national convenor and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal suffered a significant defeat in the high-profile New Delhi constituency, losing to BJP’s Parvesh Verma by a margin of 4,089 votes. The latest Election Commission (EC) data shows the BJP leading in eight additional seats, while AAP is ahead in two more, bringing their likely final tally to 48 and 22, respectively.

Former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia also lost in Jangpura, conceding defeat to BJP’s Tarvinder Singh Marwah by 675 votes. Meanwhile, AAP’s minister and prominent leader Saurabh Bharadwaj was defeated in Greater Kailash by BJP’s Shikha Roy, who won by 3,188 votes.

Parvesh Verma, the son of former Delhi Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma, attributed his victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the people of Delhi. The BJP’s success marks a major turnaround in Delhi politics, displacing AAP’s decade-long hold over the city’s governance.

Despite heavy losses, three AAP ministers—Gopal Rai, Mukesh Ahlawat, and Imran Hussain—managed to retain their seats. Hussain won from Ballimaran with a margin of 29,823 votes, Rai secured Babarpur with 18,994 votes, and Ahlawat claimed Sultanpur Majra with a margin of 17,126 votes. Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Atishi also held onto her Kalkaji seat, defeating BJP’s Ramesh Bidhuri.

Among the key BJP victories, Mohan Singh Bisht won the Mustafabad seat by 17,578 votes, while Kapil Mishra secured Karawal Nagar with a margin of 23,355 votes. Rekha Gupta won Shalimar Bagh, defeating her AAP rival by 29,595 votes, and Manjinder Singh Sirsa claimed Rajouri Garden with an 18,190-vote margin. Tilak Ram Gupta emerged victorious in Tri Nagar by 15,896 votes, Umang Bajaj won Rajinder Nagar by 1,231 votes, and Chandan Kumar Choudhary secured Sangam Vihar with a narrow margin of 344 votes.

AAP also had some key wins, with Virender Singh Kadian taking Delhi Cantt by 2,029 votes, Kuldeep Kumar securing Kondli with a margin of 6,293 votes, Sahi Ram winning Tughlakabad by 14,711 votes, Jarnail Singh claiming Tilak Nagar with an 11,656-vote lead, and Imran Hussain emerging victorious in Ballimaran by 29,823 votes.

With the BJP’s landslide victory, the Congress has once again failed to make an impact, drawing a blank for the third consecutive Delhi Assembly election.

With PTI inputs