Litmus test for AAP in Delhi Assembly byelection

After a series of political and electoral reversals, a litmus test awaits the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP this Wednesday, when Bawana Assembly seat goes to bypoll.

It will be a prestige battle for Kejriwal as the bypoll was necessitated after AAP MLA Ved Prakash quit the Assembly to join the BJP in March.

A victory is very much needed for the AAP, as a reversal in fortunes would be a relief for the party battered in a bypoll and civic body elections in Delhi and Assembly polls in Punjab earlier this year.

The BJP has fielded Prakash in the seat reserved for Scheduled Castes, while the AAP is in the ring with Ramchandra. The Congress, which is also looking for a comeback, has fielded three-time MLA from Bawana, Surendra Kumar.

The campaign has entered the frenetic last phase with all the eight candidates, including Independents, trying to win over the voters.

The counting of votes will be on August 28.

The BJP is riding high on its electoral victory in civic polls and Rajouri Garden bypoll and expects that majority of the 2.94 lakh voters would repose their faith in the saffron party and “teach Arvind Kejriwal a lesson” as Union Minister Sanjeev Balyan said during a campaign meeting last week.

 For the AAP, the rebellion by one of its MLAs, Kapil Mishra, and public displeasure expressed by senior leader Kumar Vishwas are still fresh in the public’s memory.