Delhi Assembly polls: BJP focuses on intensive outreach in 30 Dalit-dominated seats

Delhi BJP focuses on Dalit outreach campaign to improve performance in upcoming assembly polls.

“The BJP is hopeful of “markedly improving” its performance in Dalit-dominated constituencies of the city on the basis of a sustained and focussed outreach campaign spread over months ahead of the February 5 assembly polls,” party leaders said.

The party failed to win even one of the 12 Scheduled Castes (SC) reserved constituencies in the assembly polls held in 2015 and 2020. In previous elections too, the BJP never won more than two-three of these seats.

There are 30 assembly constituencies in Delhi, including 12 reserved for SC candidates, in which the Dalit community voters range from 17 to 45%, according to Delhi BJP leaders.

“Apart from the 12 reserved constituencies, there are 18 other seats with up to 25% SC community votes, including Rajender Nagar, Chandni Chowk, Adarsh Nagar, Shahdara, Tughalaqbad, Bijwasan, where the BJP and its SC Morcha worked in the past several months,” they said.

An elaborate outreach campaign through SC workers was conducted in the slums and unauthorised colonies of these 30 constituencies in the last few months.

Delhi BJP SC Morcha president Mohan Lal Gihara said senior SC workers were deputed as "Vistarak" (expanders) in all these 30 constituencies for a focused outreach among the community members.

“The ‘Vistarak’ further deputed 10 Dalit youth on each of the polling booths for person-to-person contact in various localities and residential areas in these constituencies,” he said.