Kejriwal seeks Modi’s blessings after winning MCD election

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s blessing in first reaction after his party ended BJP’s 15 years rule in MCD.
“We need the central government’s help. We need the PM and centre’s aashirvad (blessing),” he said at AAP’s national headquarters here.
Kejriwal claimed that the blessing was needed to carry out development works in the city.
In the 250-member house, AAP won 134 seats, while the BJP won 104, so far.
The Congress, on the other hand, won just nine in a city it ruled for decades.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has crossed the magic number of 126 in Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) election results on Wednesday, ending BJP’s 15 years of rule.
According to the State Election Commission (SEC), the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP has won 134 seats out of the 250 Wards.
The BJP, which left no stone unturned and was eyeing to retain power, won 104 seats, the data showed.
As per the poll panel, Congress bagged nine seats, followed by three independents.
Elated over his party’s performance, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, while addressing the party workers, expressed his gratitude to the people of Delhi for reposing faith in AAP.
“I congratulate the people of Delhi for this big change. Today the people of Delhi gave me a big responsibility to make Delhi better and cleaner. I will fulfill their aspirations” he said.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia also expressed his gratitude to the people of Delhi and said, “Thanked them for trusting Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi MCD”.
“For us, this is not just a victory, it is a big responsibility,” he added. The polls for 250 wards in the national capital were held on December 4.
There was a total of 1,349 candidates in the fray and the voter turnout was around 50 per cent.
In 2017, BJP had won 181 of the (then) 270 municipal wards while AAP could secure only 48, and Congress finished third with 30.

Despite the BJP falling short of winning a majority, Modi’s party proved the pollsters wrong. Some exit polls gave AAP as many as 175 seats, while the BJP’s tally was projected to remain far below the 100-mark.
Modi’s BJP, however, managed to raise its vote share from 36 per cent in the 2017 election to 39 per cent.
The MCD controls several public amenities – from schools and hospitals to road repairing and issuing licenses for new shops.
In the last MCD elections in 2017, the BJP won a thumping majority, winning 181 seats in the then 272-member civic body.
The AAP bagged 49 seats. This year the total number of seats was reduced to 250 after a delimitation exercise by the Election Commission. (UNI)