The weather in North India seems to be easing out a little and temperatures are reaching near normal in most of the places, right from the hills to the plains. While people in most of the places are enjoying comfortable weather conditions, Delhi Assembly elections are raising the heat by a couple of notches.
The last lap of campaigning for the February 7 Delhi elections came to end amidst a frenzy of mudslinging and vicious approaches. All the three parties were seen fighting for the last opportunity to reach every dissuaded voter.
There could be dampness in the air, with a fresh western disturbance expected to affect Jammu and Kashmir around February 7, but that will not dampen the spirit of voters. Fortunately, this weather system will not disturb Delhi until 8th or 9th of February. There’s hardly any chance of rain in Delhi on the day of voting. If at all then only light rain is likely in the later part of the day.
Opinion polls might suggest that Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party is nosing ahead of Kiran Bedi’s Bhartiya Janata Party, but the real situation could turn out to be entirely contrary. Even in the last minute Congress does not seem to be in the running. However, one might get to hear a lot of acclaim for the Congress party from the Muslim voters in old Delhi constituencies.
AAP has made rapid inroads even among the Muslim community but at least 2 out of 5 in every nook and corner of Delhi can be heard saying “par woh jam nahin paaye”, meaning he couldn’t secure a strong foothold.
AAP's 49-day government formed last year might have given BJP an opportunity to dub Arvind Kejriwal as a quitter or bhagora but somewhere down the line, it appears to be its biggest asset. Free ka bijli pani is a different ball game all together when Kejriwal's short-lived government saw the apparent or actual ‘rishwatkhori’ (corrupt) police and the much-feared MCD almost vanish into oblivion. Not to forget, only to reappear after AAP’s term came to an abrupt end. On a concluding note, the fight for government formation in Delhi is definitely creating a political quagmire.
With double digit minimum and maximum comfortably in mid-twenties, voters can head out in full confidence to decide Delhi’s fate. Morning will be kind of chilly but as the day advances, weather will become comfortable. Kejriwal’s changing calculations might be a deterrent for people but weather will definitely be supportive.
