Having been vanquished in the last Delhi Assembly polls, the bypolls to 13 municipal wards in the national Capital are going to be the litmus test for the Congress.

The party that ruled the city for full three terms under Sheila Diskhit was wiped out after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won 67 out the total 70 assembly seats. Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) that had led in 60 assembly segments in the 2014 General Elections was almost obliterated in one of the biggest poll debacles in Delhi.

The dice is heavily loaded against the Congress as it has also failed to secure a majority in any of the three municipal bodies in the last elections, is said to be making desperate attempts to register its victory in the bypolls.

Thought the State Election Commission has not declared the dates for the bypolls, the Congress has already started on a frenetic pace. Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) has sent observers in all 13 poll bound wards to get inputs about the potential candidates for the municipal polls.

Congress leaders feel that a win will not only galvanise the party cadre but will also provide a handle to beat the BJP and the AAP. Congress may target AAP and BJP both for failing the people in the national Capital and the country as well, said a party insider.

There are chances that the ruling AAP may not field candidates in the municipal bypolls and thus leaving the field open for the BJP and Congress to battle it out. For BJP winning these wards will be a challenge too after being relegated to just three seats in the Delhi Assembly.  However, the pitch may be queered for the Congress if the AAP decides to take the plunge.

Indications are that  the Congress may field youth in all the 13 wards as that would gel with its Vice President Rahul Gandhi’s push for the young energetic candidates. The scenario may change if the grand old party takes the winning factor into account, said a DPCC leader.

Interestingly, some former legislators had expressed interest to contest the municipal bypolls as they feel that their win in the municipal polls may help them in contesting the 2020 Assembly Polls with confidence.

It may be recalled that all 13 municipal wards fell vacant after their councillors won the Assembly elections either in 2013 or 2015. The Khichripur municipal ward, which was represented by Independent candidate Vinod Kumar Binny, fell vacant after he won the Assembly polls on AAP ticket in 2013.

Both Munirka  and Vikas Nagar wards,  represented  by Independent candidates Pramilla Tokas and Mahender Yadav respectively, fell vacant  after they were elected in the Assembly elections on AAP ticket in 2015. The Jhilmil ward fell vacant after Akali Dal councillor Jitender Singh Shunty won  the Assembly elections with the support of the BJP in 2013.

Even Ballimaran, Tehkhand and Nawada wards, represented by lJP’s Imran Hussaain, BSP’s Sahi Ram  and BJP’s Naresh Bhaliyan respectively, fell vacant after they won the Assembly poll on the AAP ticket in 2015.

The remaining six wards - Wazirpur, Shalimarbagh (North), Kamruddin Nagar, Matiala, Bhatti  and Nanakpura -- all represented by the BJP councilors  fell vacant  after they got elected to the Assembly in 2013.