Dixit, fighting all odds spearheaded developmental drive and never bothered about petty party squabble. Delhi state Congress has been at loggerheads with her but she has survived due to her supposed proximity with Sonia Gandhi. She could have achieved much more if the party had stood behind her and her rivals had not looked at every opportunity to sabotage her every move.

Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) on the other hand seems disintegrated at this crucial juncture. The announcement of Vijay Kumar Malhotra as chief ministerial candidate has not gone well with Vijay Goyal faction and they are working at cross purposes which makes their job even more arduous. The choice of several candidates is being criticised and the party seems to be in disarray.

Poonam Azad, the vice president of Delhi state BJP, fought against Dixit in the last election, but has been denied a ticket in this election. An agitated Azad has resigned from the party. She hails from Purvanchal and this would certainly will not be well received in that community.

BJP seems to have struck in a time wrap. It has not changed its electoral strategy according to changed demographic profile of voters. As per conservative estimates, there are around 40 lakh voters from Purvanchal but the party has been completely ignoring their existence. This huge segment of voters, feeling unwanted, have drifted towards the Congress and have made Congress invincible in Delhi, now.

Dixit was quick to react and apologise for her off the cuff remark about people from Purvanchal. Malhotra is also aware of the importance of this huge chunk of votes and perhaps this very fact prompted him to participate in ’Chath- Puja’. But it is too late and voters seem to have already decided whom to vote for in this election.

BJP used to get huge votes by default because Delhi was dominated by refugees from Pakistan earlier. The blood bath and communal hatred they faced in Pakistan during partition made them staunch RSS followers. Most of the leaders also came from this community. BJP had a considerable hold over the trading community of Delhi. But the situation has changed during the last two decades and now, no party can emerge victorious without garnering votes from every section of the society. BJP leadership ignored this simple fact, consequently, they are staring at defeat before the ballot is cast.

Congress has been wiped out in Purvanchal because it aligned there with casteist parties and was equally responsible for the reverse development of this region. Millions were forced to migrate but these migrants had to align with Congress due to utter apathy shown towards them by the Delhi state BJP. The presence of Sheila Dixit, who is from Uttar Pradesh, also proved catalyst in attracting these voters towards Congress. There is still some time left but will the BJP try course correction swiftly, in this period to romp home? We shall know that very soon.