BJP prepared for re-poll in Delhi, confident of victory: Harsh Vardhan

New Delhi: Buoyed by Bharatiya Janata Party’s spectacular show in the Lok Sabha polls, its Delhi chief Harsh Vardhan on Friday said the party was ready for assembly elections and insisted that it would not resort to any kind of “manipulation” to form government in the city.

Noting that people of Delhi supported BJP whole-heartedly in the Lok Sabha polls, Vardhan said there was no option but to go for election in the city as the assembly cannot be kept under suspended animation for more than one year.

“BJP is prepared for a re-poll and we are confident of our victory. I will be the last man in this world to resort to any kind of manipulation,” Vardhan told PTI after he emerged victorious in the prestigious Chandni Chowk constituency, defeating his nearest rival Ashutosh of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). The BJP won all the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi and the victorious contestants included three sitting MLAs including Vardhan.

The Arvind Kejriwal government had resigned on 14 February after suffering a defeat in the assembly on the Jan Lokpal Bill. President’s rule was imposed in Delhi following the 49-day rule of AAP government.

In the assembly polls in December, AAP had won 28 seats and it was given outside support by eight Congress MLAs to form the government. BJP along with one SAD candidate had 32 MLAs in the 70 member House but had refused to form the government citing lack of majority.

The JD-U had won one seat while another seat was won by an Independent. As three BJP MLAs were elected to Parliament, its strength in the assembly will come down to 28.

When asked whether he will join Narendra Modi’s cabinet, Vardhan said he will follow the direction of the party leadership. In the assembly election, Vardhan, who was party’s chief ministerial candidate, had won from Krishna Nagar constituency. When asked how much credit he will give to Modi for BJP’s nation wide victory, Vardhan said, “It is everybody’s victory.

Narendra Modi is a symbol and representative of BJP’s ideology. He has become a symbol of aspiration of millions of Indians.

“You cannot separate him (Modi) from BJP and you cannot separate him from the country now. He is the symbol of good governance, hope for the youth, women and senior citizens of this country. You can’t see him in isolation,” Vardhan stressed.

PTI