Delhi polls: Rajouri Garden unsure if CAA will be a vote catcher
NEW DELHI: Home to a long line of plush malls and eateries, Rajouri Garden is doubtlessly the busiest and liveliest part of West Delhi.
Dominated by Sikhs, most of whom migrated from Pakistan, the constituency also has a fair mix of people from the Gurjar community.
For long a Congress bastion, Rajouri was swayed by the anti-incumbency wave in 2013 when BJP fought the polls in alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). Congress lost the seat to SAD’s Manjinder Singh Sirsa.
In 2015, however, AAP’s Jarnail Singh wrested the seat from SAD. However, he had to resign his MLA-ship in 2017 as he was named a candidate for the Punjab Assembly elections. Sirsa won back the seat in the ensuing by-election.
Though the SAD-BJP alliance for the polls has been restored following initial hiccups, the latter has fielded Ramesh Khanna this time against AAP’s Dhanwanti Chandela, who was rewarded with a ticket after switching over from Congress.
The grand old party has set its hopes on Amandeep Singh Sudan.
How will Rajouri vote?
With SAD initially pulling out of the BJP alliance citing differences over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, the AAP would have seen its chance of winning back the seat brighten.
However, with the alliance restored on Wednesday, the SAD’s influence over the local Sikh community could help BJP take the seat this time.
Sealing impact
With Rajouri a hub of many small-scale industries, especially those related to marble and mechanical works, and commercial centres, fear of a sealing drive is rife within the local business community.
The fear has been gaining ground since 2018 when, a monitoring panel set up by the Supreme Court, called the area a ‘mess’ and suggested that the South Delhi Municipal Corporation issue notices to local business and industrial establishments.
“Many have switched their businesses elsewhere fearing a sealing drive. I think sealing would be a big issue in the polls,” Karamjeet Singh, who runs an engineering shop, said.
CAA or freebies?
Home to a sizeable contingent of Sikh migrants from Pakistan, the Centre’s move to implement the CAA has come in for praise. However, the voters are unsure if the move will impact the polling outcome.
“Those protesting against CAA are being misled. However, I doubt if the move will impact an election fought on local issues. We want better roads, water and electricity, which impact our daily lives,” said 68-year-old Saranjeet Singh, a retired central government employee.