Narendra Modi’s ruling Hindu party has won the most seats in the High Stakes Assembly elections on Indian Union territory for more than a quarter of a century.
Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has ousted the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which has ruled since 2015, winning 47 seats in 70 parliaments, including the Indian capital, New Delhi. AAP won 22 seats. According to India’s Election Commission, the results of the race with the remaining one seat have not yet been declared.
India’s major opposition parliamentary parties have lost all their seats for the third year in a row.
AAP founder and leader Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy, Manish Sisodia, have lost their seats despite building widespread support in welfare policies and anti-corruption movements.
“We accept the mission of humble people,” Kejwal said in a video statement that he congratulated the BJP on his victory. He said he hopes the BJP will fulfill its election promise.
“We have done a lot of work in the areas of health, education and infrastructure over the past decade,” Kejwal said. “We will not only play a constructive opposition, but we will remain among the people and continue to serve them.”
BJP supporters waving Modi flags and posters chanted the slogans, and vote results began to flow outside the capital’s headquarters, with most exit polls predicting the party’s victory.
BJP Amit Shah, India’s powerful home minister, said his party’s victory “people cannot be fooled by lies every time.” He said under Modi’s leadership, the BJP will make New Delhi “the number one capital of the world by fulfilling all its promises”.
“Our victory is a sign of people’s faith in Prime Minister Modi’s vision of progress,” he said.
Saturday’s victory is considered a major boost for the BJP after the BJP failed to secure a majority in last year’s national elections, and must form a government with coalition partners. He won several lost positions last year by winning two state elections in northern Haryana and western Maharashtra.
Before the election, Modi’s party significantly reduced its income tax on the salaries middle class, one of its main voting blocks, in its federal budget.
During the election, Modi and Kejwal offered to revamp the government schools and provide free medical services and electricity, along with monthly salary of over Rs 2,000 ($25) to poor women.
Kejwal was arrested last year along with two major party leaders on charges of receiving bribes from alcohol dealers. They denied the charges, saying they were part of a political plot.
The Supreme Court granted bail for Kejwal and other ministers. Kejwal later abandoned the post of Prime Minister to his most senior leader, Atish, who won her seat on Saturday.
Opposition parties have widely condemned Kejwal’s arrest and accused Modi government of misusing federal investigative agencies of harassing and undermining political adversaries. They pointed to several attacks, arrests and corruption investigations prior to the national election.
Kejriwal formed the AAP in 2012 after tapping on public outrage over the corruption scandal. His poor policies focus on amending state-run schools and providing cheap electricity, free medical care and bus transport for women.
In 2020, the AAP won 62 of 70 seats in a landslide victory in the final state assembly election, leaving eight for the BJP and nothing for the Congress party.
The BJP was powered in Delhi by the Congress party in 1998 and ran the government for 15 years.
