NCP to contest Delhi Assembly polls independently

Ajit Pawar-led NCP fields 30 candidates in Delhi elections, focusing on expansion and secular ideology.

New Delhi: After massive success in Maharashtra elections, the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is now gearing up to enter Delhi’s political arena, announcing 30 candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections.

Unlike in Maharashtra, where Ajit Pawar’s NCP is a key partner in the Mahayuti alliance with the BJP, the party has decided to contest the Delhi elections independently.

Of the 30 candidates fielded by Ajit Pawar-led NCP, 13 belong to the minority community.

Talking to The Sunday Guardian, NCP’s National General Secretary and spokesperson Brijmohan Shrivastav said, “Initially, we wanted to contest on 45 seats, but due to several issues, we agreed to contest on 30 seats. These are our finest candidates who represent the best of our values, and are committed to the development and prosperity of Delhi.”

When asked about the reason for contesting the Delhi elections independently despite being in alliance with the BJP in Maharashtra, he replied, “Our alliance is intact with BJP but our aim is to expand NCP’s base. We don’t want to confine ourselves to Maharashtra politics. Partnering with BJP for Delhi could have yielded a single seat, like Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) and Chirag Paswan’s LJP. That is not the kind of impact we want.”

Addressing the issue of fielding 13 minority candidates, Shrivastav said, “While we have a solid alliance with BJP in Maharashtra, our ideology remains distinct. During the Maharashtra elections, when UP CM Yogi Adityanath gave the slogan – ‘Batenge to Katenge’- Ajit Pawar openly criticised it and said that we don’t subscribe to such ideologies, as we are a secular party.”

It is pertinent to note that the NCP has contested state elections outside Maharashtra in the past as well. In the 2020 Delhi elections, the NCP (united) contested five seats but did not secure any victories. This will be the first Delhi election for the party after the 2023 split between the Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar factions.
Star campaigners for the party include NCP chief Ajit Pawar, working president Praful Patel, Lok Sabha member Sunil Tatkare, Parth Pawar, and the party’s in-charge for the northeastern states, Sanjay Prajapati, among others.