With Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) announcing plans to contest the Kalkaji seat on its own in the December 4 Assembly polls, the constituency is likely to witness an interesting contest between the BJP and Congress.
Considering the huge presence of Punjabi-Sikh and Vaish voters in Kalkaji, the BJP is treading cautiously and may allot ticket to someone who can aptly fit the bill of caste combination. Kalkaji was considered to be a BJP stronghold but, Congress’ Subhash Chopra wrested the seat from the party in 1998, which has significant number of Punjabi-Sikh (45 per cent) and Vaish (15 per cent) electorate.
For the last 15 years, Subhash Chopra has been winning the Kalkaji Assembly seat, which was part of the Greater Kailash seat before delimitation. In 2008, when the BJP announced Prof Vijay Kumar Malhotra as its Chief Ministerial hopeful, an entrepreneur Rajnish Goenka seemed a strong heir apparent from Kalkaji. However, Jai Gopal Abrol was made party candidate and he lost the election to Chopra by a margin of 13,000 votes despite the the constituency being a BJP stronghold.
Among other ticket seekers, including a sitting councillor of South Delhi Municipal Corporation and Gujjar leaders, Goenka is one of the aspirants this time too. He belongs to a business-class family and owns Tobu Cycles. He is also backed by the RSS and chairman of 2,000 temple authorities in Delhi. “In 2008 elections, following last minute changes to the list, the party chose Jai Gopal Abrol, who was defeated by Chopra by a margin of nearly 13, 000 votes. This time, the party is looking for a suitable candidate who can take on Congress’ Subhash Chopra, a three-time MlA from the area,” said a Delhi BJP leader.
Party sources said that aspirants from the Gujjar community are also demanding tickets from the area even though they constitute only 3 per cent of the total voters’ population in the constituency.
“Two Gujjar leaders are also seeking tickets from the area. However, the constituency comprises only 2-3 per cent of Gujjars. Given the sizeable Gujjar population in South Delhi Assembly segments, the BJP may give tickets to people of the community from 7-8 seats. Hence, the party may pick any Punjabi-Vaish contestant from Kalkaji this time if it does not go to SAD,” sources said.