Delhi elections: Big claim by Atishi, says 'Centre is manipulating electoral rolls, to remove 20,000 voters'

With Delhi elections slated for February 2025, AAP is vying for a third consecutive term following its resounding 2020 victory, where it won 62 of 70 seats.

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Tuesday alleged that LG Vinai Saxena is attempting to manipulate the electoral process by getting AAP supporters removed from the electoral rolls. She claimed that poll officers are being pressurised to remove around 20,000 voters from the voter list, adding the BJP fears defeat in the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls.

"The central government is trying to win the Delhi elections by unfair means. They are orchestrating the removal of voters from the electoral roll, particularly those aligned with AAP," she said while addressing a press conference in Delhi.

However, there was no immediate response from the BJP.

Transferring 29 SDMs is the first step of the conspiracy: Atishi

The senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader cited an October 28 order by the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi transferring 29 Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) as the first step in this alleged conspiracy.

Appealing to booth-level officers to resist such actions, she urged them to document any undue pressure or coercion. 

"If someone tries to force you into cutting voters’ names, record it and send it to me. I will ensure action is taken. The Constitution of India is in your hands today," she said.

Kejriwal alleges BJP demolished several slums in Delhi

In another political development, ruling AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal Tuesday stepped up his attack on the BJP accusing it of resorting to "jhuggi tourism" ahead of the assembly polls due in February despite "demolishing" several slums in the city in recent years.

Addressing AAP's foundation day function, he said some leaders of the BJP were going to stay with slums dwellers but will return back a year later to demolish them with bulldozers. The Delhi BJP is launching its "Jhuggi Ratri Pravas Abhiyan" with senior leaders including state president Virendra Sachdeva assigned different slums to stay and interact with people living there.
 
The BJP which is out of power in Delhi since 1998, is eyeing voters living in the slums, considered staunch votaries of AAP and Kejriwal, through sustained campaigns and outreach programmes. The party's night stay campaign will cover 250 slum clusters in the city.
 
The BJP is doing "jhuggi tourism. People go to Goa on holiday for recreation but the BJP is making fun of the poverty of slum dwellers by staying with them for just one night, Kejriwal charged. He said the slum dwellers needed to be cautious of those visiting them under 'jhuggi tourism" and claimed the BJP will return soon with bulldozers to demolish the same slums.
(With PTI inputs)