North East Delhi is a Lok Sabha constituency where civic issues dominate the electoral discourse, be it roads, sanitation, or traffic. While some people say a lot needs to be done in the area, many appear satisfied with their two-time MP, Manoj Tiwari. They praise him for being approachable and very helpful in most situations.
The seat, which has been known for throwing up some of the most-watched poll battles in the national capital and the country, is all set to vote this Saturday in a face-off between two “boys from Bihar”.
As per the 2011 Census, the average population density of the constituency is 36,155 persons per square km — the highest in India. At least 22.42 lakh people live in the 62 sq km area. The population here is dominated by Purvanchalis — people from parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Those from Uttarakhand also live in the area in large numbers.
Key issues: Roads, sanitation, traffic
News18 spoke to the locals in the area who raised a number of issues, some blaming the problems on the high population here.
“This is my tenth year in the area. I came here as a student and now I am working in Delhi. When I came here, roads, traffic, and sanitation were major problems, and they still are. Parties are saying this election will see the end of it. I am keeping my fingers crossed,” said 28-year-old Burari resident Gaurav Tripathi, hailing from Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur.
Countering Tripathi’s view, Brijesh Kumar, a shopkeeper from Burari, blamed a high migrant population for the area’s woes.
“Every year people migrate to this area in large numbers because it is cheap. Traffic is the major concern but the government cannot do much. People lack road sense. They park their vehicles without thinking about others. People build houses but they don’t consider building parking spaces. The government is not creating these issues,” said the 52-year-old.
For Seelampur resident Sangeeta Yadav, the key concern is the lack of sanitation, which not just causes pollution but health problems as well.
“Be it Lok Sabha, assembly, or MCD elections, leaders come and go but there is no
improvement in the sanitation in the area. Before elections, we are promised that they will clean it. But post-elections, it is just a blame game. The streets are full of garbage, inviting dogs and stray animals. This adds to the safety concerns as well,” said the 45-year-old.
The Seelampur drain is also a major factor adding to the pollution in the area. In 2017, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) directed the Delhi government to immediately clean the drain that passes through parts of North East Delhi and remains clogged with garbage and municipal solid waste. However, the situation has not improved much.
While a lot of people raised the issue of sanitation, some also praised the daily garbage collection by the MCD.
“Earlier, people had to hire someone to collect the garbage, and even after taking the money they were not regular. Now, with the door-to-door garbage collection by the MCD, we can dispose of the waste without much hassle,” said 36-year-old Ajeet Sinha.
Ankit Gautam, a 30-year-old working professional, said that the roads in the area have improved a lot over the years.
“Around the Covid lockdown time, the roads in Burari were repaired extensively and a separate lane for ambulances was also made. That helped a lot of people in that critical time. Also, the work on the sewer is underway,” he said, adding that water sprinklers are used in the area to check the pollution and dust levels.
Crediting the government for the betterment of schools in the constituency in the last few years, Krishna, a 38-year-old Bhajanpura resident, said that the quest for good education for his young boys was why he moved out of Bihar.
“My relatives have been here for the last several years. I moved here in 2016. Who would have thought that an auto driver could send his children to an English-medium school? My kids can read and write English. I want them to have good jobs,” said the father of two boys aged 11 and 13.
Manoj Tiwari’s dominance
The North East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency includes ten assembly segments — Burari, Timarpur, Seemapuri, Rohtas Nagar, Seelampur, Ghonda, Babarpur, Gokalpur, Mustafabad, and Karawal Nagar. In the 2020 assembly polls, the BJP won in Karawal Nagar, Ghonda, and Rohtas Nagar while the remaining seats voted for the Aam Aadmi Party. In 2015, the BJP won only Mustafabad, while all the other seats elected AAP.
Being a Purvanchali-dominated seat, parties try to field candidates from the community. Two-time MP from the constituency, Manoj Tiwari, has got the BJP ticket again.
Tiwari, hailing from Bihar, is a household name in the Hindi belt due to his professional career as an actor and singer. So far, the seat has seen three Lok Sabha polls. In the last two elections, Tiwari had comfortable victories. Also, he is the sole BJP MP from the city who has been renominated this time.
Many locals seemed happy with their MP and his work. Calling him “ghar ka aadmi” (somebody from own home), 38-year-old Santosh Pandey said Tiwari is very approachable and helpful.
“It is difficult to find a leader so humble. He is not just approachable but very helpful too. We are very happy with him,” said the working professional.
Kanhaiya’s youth focus
To counter Tiwari, the Congress has fielded young Bihari politician Kanhaiya Kumar – a former president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University students’ union. He is also being backed by AAP as part of its alliance with the Congress in the capital.
Hailing from Bihar’s Begusarai, Kumar is popular among the youth. He has been active on the ground in the past few weeks and is connecting with youngsters.
“He understands the issues of young students and we are hopeful that he can resolve a lot of our problems,” said 24-year-old Rohan Das, a Delhi University student from the area.
Past results
The seat has seen just three Lok Sabha polls – in 2009, 2014, and 2019. It is among those constituencies in the country that elected the party which ended up ruling at the Centre.
In 2009, when the seat voted for the Congress, it came to power at the Centre. In 2014 and 2019, it was the BJP – at the seat and the Centre.
Congress’s Jai Prakash Agarwal was elected from the seat with a 59.03% vote share in 2009 – a record to date. He bagged 5.18 lakh votes. That year, the BJP was at the second spot.
In 2014, BJP’s Tiwari bagged the seat with 5.96 lakh votes (45.38%). AAP came second while Congress’s Agarwal slipped to third position with 2.14 lakh votes.
In 2019, Tiwari was re-elected. He was facing three-time Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit. The BJP leader got a higher vote share and his winning margin also improved. He won the polls by 3.66 lakh votes, getting 7.87 lakh votes (around 54%) overall.
With almost 24 lakh voters, this time, the seat plays a critical role in the Lok Sabha elections in Delhi. The counting of the votes will be carried out on June 4.
Explore in-depth coverage of Lok Sabha Election 2024 Schedule, Voter Turnout, Upcoming Phase And Much More At News18 Website
Comments
0 comment