There are 25 in race for 1 Congress MLA ticket in Okhla for the 2025 Delhi Assembly election.
As the date for the poll is inching closure, Muslim-majority constituency of Okhla is witnessing a surge in political activities with several leaders (part-time or full-time or activist turned politician) are asserting their claims to contest for the MLA seat from Okhla on Congress ticket.
A Congress leader, who is also eyeing the ticket, said it is very difficult to give exact figure. “Earlier there were nineteen candidates in the race and this I can say with surety. After the reshuffling in Delhi Congress, a few new leaders have laid claim to the ticket. The new faces are claiming that as their people are in top position their chance of getting ticket is high,” said the leader on the condition of anonymity.
Okhla lacks basic civic amenities even after 20 years of Congress, AAP rule
For Okhla residents and political watchers this is not something new. Every time elections come, new faces surface, promising to be the community’s saviour. But when you look around, it’s clear that those promises often go unfulfilled. Even after over 20 years of Congress rule and a decade of AAP in power, residents in Okhla are still struggling to avail basic civic amenities. Garbage is left piling up on the streets, sewers constantly overflow, manholes are left open, and broken roads are just part of daily life.
The reality is that most people in Okhla have resigned themselves to living in these poor conditions, feeling like nothing will change. It seems there’s no leader around to step up and make a real difference.
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Okhla certainly isn’t short of activists and leaders who are not interested in working to develop the area. The problem is most of them are nowhere to be seen for most of the year, only popping up when elections are near. A perfect example of this was the Congress Nyay rally in Okhla just the other day, where preparations were in full swing and posters were everywhere, as usual.
The area was buzzing with political activities, almost like a festival was going on.
Millions spent on posters, banners
One e-rickshaw driver joked that it felt like there was an election today, with posters plastered everywhere illegally.
While it’s hard to know the exact amount spent on posters and banners on one day, rough estimates suggest local leaders may have shelled out anywhere between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 5 lakh each just for the poster campaign and event preparations, aiming to impress the top Congress leadership in hopes of securing the ticket.
There was fierce competition to be seen as local leaders, with some even tearing down posters of their rivals. One resident, speaking anonymously, estimated that at least Rs 50 lakh was spent on the posters and the event, though it’s nearly impossible to know the exact figure.
25 in race for 1 Congress MLA ticket in Okhla
Regardless of the social or political dynamics, having 25 candidates in race for 1 Congress ticket in Okhla is already a lot. And that’s not even counting the other political hopefuls from different parties who are also in the race for the MLA seat.
When asked with a local leader about why there is such a competition and rush of candidates, he said: “There has been a huge degradation. Muslims want to join politics for earning money and it is easy way to become rich overnight. These people are not joining politics to empower their locality or work for people but their only aim is to fatten their wallet.”
The rush of candidates is only seen in Okhla, while in many other wards, the Congress is struggling to even find a suitable candidate, said one ticket hopeful.
“Amanatullah faces anti-incumbency, Congress has upper hand”
“There is a strong feeling among leaders that this time around, Congress has the upper hand. Whoever manages to secure the party’s ticket has a strong chance of unseating the current AAP MLA, Amanatullah Khan. With growing anti-incumbency and his popularity at an all-time low, it looks like his hold on the area is weakening,” he said.
