MCD bypolls campaign gathers pace

Party campaigns ahead of the Delhi municipal corporation bypolls picked up steam today with BJP, AAP and Congress thrusting their weight behind their candidates in the elections that is being billed as a litmus test for all three.
By-elections to 13 wards would be held on May 15. The results are likely to have a bearing on the MCD polls next year.
Exuding confidence, Delhi BJP claimed that its candidates will poll the "largest vote share" in the bypolls.
Citing the finding of an "internal survey" by the party, Delhi BJP president Satish Upadhyay said, "BJP has regained the confidence of the people of Delhi and in these civic by- elections we will get the largest vote share and our performance will be the best."

A team of senior leaders of BJP are overseeing the election campaign of all its candidates. Top office-bearers of Delhi BJP are also working as in-charges in all the 13 wards.
As per Congress, which is trying to regain its lost ground in Delhi, it has even deployed its senior national level leaders for campaigning.

Ghulam Nabi Azad, Shakeel Ahamad, Raj Babbar and Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken campaigned in different wards in North, South, and East Delhi Municipal Corporations.
The erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was trifurcated into NDMC, SDMC and EDMC in 2012. The civic bodies have been BJP-controlled for the past nearly 10 years.

In his public meetings, Maken held both AAP and BJP for "stalling" development and pushing people to face hardship.
Aam Aadmi Party riding on the rousing mandate given to it by in 2014 Assembly elections, is now eyeing maximum number of seats in the by-polls.
Senior party leaders and ministers of Delhi government including Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Kapil Mishra and Kumar Vishwas attended public meetings in the wards.
AAP leader and convenor of Delhi unit Dilip Pandey has appealed to voters to go for honesty, and support its party candidates as a first step to make the MCD (municipal corporations of Delhi) "corruption-free."

The party was first to release the list of its candidates for all the 13 wards and has been working on door-to-door canvassing besides campaigning on social media.
Of the 13 wards where by-elections will be held, seven fall under the jurisdiction of SDMC, four in NDMC and two in EDMC. The counting will take place on May 17.
The by-polls were necessitated resignation of nine councillors on becoming legislators after the 2013 Assembly polls and four after the 2015 polls.