Delhi Election: BJP’s Kapil Mishra secures comfortable victory in Karawal Nagar

Delhi Election: Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Kapil Mishra secured an astounding victory from the Karawal Nagar constituency, winning 1,07,367 votes.

Marking his MLA candidature with a decisive win for the BJP, the former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader triumphed with a margin of 23,355 votes

Mishra faced AAP’s Manoj Kumar Tyagi and Congress’s Dr PK Mishra. Tyagi secured  84,012 votes, while Dr PK Mishra garnered 3,921.

Mishra took to X to express gratitude to voters in Delhi. “The people of Delhi have trusted Modi’s guarantee… Today is the day of Delhi’s liberation from lies and loot,” he wrote.

A constituency plagued by neglect

Home to 3,11,279 registered voters, Karawal Nagar has long grappled with inadequate infrastructure, open drains, and a persistent dirty water crisis. Despite these challenges, the constituency’s political landscape remains largely unchanged, shaped by historical loyalties and deep-seated scepticism toward promises of reform.

Karawal Nagar was affected during the February 2020 communal riots in North East Delhi. While memories of the violence remain painful, voters are more focused on the infrastructural challenges that continue to affect their daily lives. The riots in February 2020 claimed 53 lives and left hundreds injured.

BJP’s stronghold remains intact

The BJP has maintained its dominance in Karawal Nagar since 1998 through Mohan Singh Bisht. However, in this election, the party fielded Kapil Mishra against AAP’s Manoj Tyagi and Congress’ PK Mishra. Mishra, who had previously defeated Bisht during the 2015 AAP wave as an AAP candidate, later switched allegiances to the BJP. While some BJP supporters initially hesitated over Bisht’s exclusion, voter sentiment ultimately consolidated around Mishra.

In the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections, Mishra unsuccessfully contested on a BJP ticket from Model Town. Mishra has stirred several controversies in the past–from initiating the ‘desh ke gaddaron ko’ chant at a pro-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) rally to leading an agitation against the Shaheen Bagh protests.

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The ‘AAP-da’ factor

During a rally in the constituency, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had called for an end to AAP’s tenure in Delhi. “The AAP has been in power for ten years, and now it’s time to free Delhi from this ‘AAP-da’. It’s time to rid Delhi of liquor mafias, close down the scamsters’ businesses, and root out the hardcore corrupt individuals,” he said at a campaign event in Karawal Nagar.

The industrial belt and its discontent

Karawal Nagar is also known for its industrial identity, with small-scale factories lining its narrow lanes. Many of these units, often run from homes, employ migrant workers from Bihar, Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh. For them, the constituency’s neglect is all too evident.

“This is BJP’s stronghold, and we will not betray them,” said one voter, dismissing concerns over Mishra’s political trajectory. Despite this loyalty, frustration over unresolved civic issues lingers. “The dirty water crisis, open drains, and lack of real development have plagued us for years, but AAP’s schemes and subsidies never reached us. We support BJP because, at the very least, they listen to us occasionally,” said Garima Gahrwal, a Karawal Nagar resident.

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“I’ve lived here for ten years,” said Raj Kumhar, a factory worker from Bihar. “The MLA hasn’t been seen since the last election in 2020. Everywhere you look, there are open drains and filthy water. It’s a serious health hazard.”

Mohammed Adil, 49, who lives above one such factory, voiced his disillusionment with politics. “We have to live here no matter what. It doesn’t matter who wins; our lives won’t change, but I am hoping that through this election, at least we get to see some change. Anyone who stays in power for too long becomes too lazy,” he said.

Despite deep-rooted issues, the BJP’s grip on Karawal Nagar remains firm. Whether this victory translates into real change for the constituency, however, remains to be seen.