On Friday, days after Delhi’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) announced its nominees, India’s federal ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its first list of 57 candidates for the upcoming State legislative polls, set for 8 February.
BJP’s Delhi chief Manoj Tiwari said in New Delhi on Friday, that the names of the remaining 13 candidates would be announced later.
Another major contender, the Indian National Congress, was yet to announce its nominees.
AAP leader and state chief Arvind Kejriwal will vie for the New Delhi assembly constituency, and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia will seek election from Patparganj in east Delhi.
Delhi is set to witness a tough triangular fight between the AAP, the BJP and Congress. In the 2015 Assembly elections, the AAP secured a landslide victory winning 67 of the 70 constituencies. The other three were secured by the BJP. The Congress party, which held power in the state for nearly 15 consecutive years, lost the contest in 2015 to the AAP failing to secure even a single seat.
Similarly, the national BJP party has not been able to secure power in the state for the last 20 years.