Delhi Assembly Elections 2025 | BJP relishes win, Kejri wall falls

Eleven years after it stormed into the country’s political landscape by snatching a spectacular victory in its first elections, Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP finally conceded Fort Delhi to the BJP, which ended its 27-year exile in the opposition benches by romping home with a two-thirds majority in the Delhi Assembly polls.

Close on the heels of Haryana and Maharashtra wins, Delhi is the third consecutive state BJP has secured in the last eight months. The victory brings yet another electoral relief for Prime Minister Narendra Modi whose party failed to touch the majority mark in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

“Jana Shakti is paramount. Development wins, good governance triumphs,” Modi posted ‘X’ as trends consolidated into results.

Track the live results here

The state unit of the BJP is bound to relish the Delhi delight a bit more considering its long wait for power in the national capital after Sushma Swaraj’s 1997 loss to Sheila Dikshit-led Congress. This time though, the national party not only gained more than eight percentage points in terms of vote share but inflicted heavy damage on the top leadership of its main opponent in a bruising seat-by-seat combat.

AAP convenor and its national face, Arvind Kejriwal lost to former MP Pravesh Verma from the New Delhi seat by more than 4,000 votes. For the Congress, though a poor third, the Delhi results, especially Kejriwal’s defeat, come as a sweet revenge against AAP, the party that was born out of social reformer Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption movement which triggered the UPA government’s downslide at the national level and relegated Congress to the margins in Delhi politics.

Conceding defeat, Kejriwal in a pre-recorded message, said AAP will play the “role of a constructive opposition”.

Other top AAP leaders too, including senior ministers, failed to make the cut. Chief Minister Aatishi, who was handed over the baton after Kejriwal quit as CM last year scraped through by 3500-odd votes. The 11-year itch also claimed other top AAP leaders. Former deputy CM Manish Sisodia lost despite changing his seat. So did senior ministers Satyendra Jain and Saurabh Bharadwaj.

Having learned its lessons from the past when it crumbled against Kejriwal in the Assembly polls after winning all of Delhi’s seven Lok Sabha seats since 2014, the BJP, this time around, made tactical changes to counter AAP.

The relentless campaign on alleged corruption in the Delhi excise policy case took the sheen off AAP’s anti-corruption plank. Hitting where it hurts the most, both Congress and BJP questioned the exorbitant expenditure incurred in refurbishing “Sheesh-Mahal”, the Delhi chief minister’s residence during Covid years.

As it lacked a credible face to take on Kejriwal in its ranks, BJP relied on Modi’s promise to “make Delhi the world’s number 1 capital. Matching AAP’s offer of freebies, BJP sealed the argument with the middle classes with a slew of sops for Delhi’s 40 lakh taxpayers.

Political developments in Delhi, though not a full state unto itself, tends to have wider ramifications.

Though a national party now with a government in Punjab and MPs in both houses of parliament, defeat in Delhi, the cradle of AAP’s experiment for alternative politics, hurts, both the party and its convenor, former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, the progenitor of alternative politics.

The outcome emboldens the BJP to push the envelope with both allies and opposition on both social and legislative agendas, including the common civil code, Waqf Amendment Bill, and One Nation One Election proposal. The Bihar elections are less than twelve months away, and it is the only heartland state where the party has never had a chief minister.

The Delhi outcome will also impact the dynamics of INDIA bloc politics. From Gujarat to Goa in the past, and Haryana to Punjab in recent years, AAP damaged Congress the most by splitting the anti-BJP votes.

The Congress, through Delhi polls, has sent a strong message to its allies - from RJD in Bihar and Akhilesh Yadav’s SP in Uttar Pradesh to Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal.

The choice is simple - whether the regional satraps would prefer to accommodate the grand old party as Hemant Soren did in Jharkhand or face a Delhi-like situation.

Delhi assembly elections 2025 results | Get all latest updates here

Delhi assembly elections 2025 results | Get constituency-wise details here

Delhi Assembly Election 2025 | The Delhi Assembly Elections saw a fierce contest between AAP and BJP, while Congress despite its best attempts failed to make a mark. The saffron party is all set to make a comeback in the national capital after almost three decades as AAP chief Kejriwal has accepted the people's verdict and looks to be part of a constructive opposition. Reactions from all quarters are pouring in as BJP celebrates its first electoral win in 2025, with Bihar polls slated to take place later this year. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.

Subscribe and follow DH on Whatsapp, X, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram to never miss out on anything.