Battle for Kalkaji: On knife’s edge as Atishi, Bidhuri and Lamba set off fireworks in high-profile contest

NEW DELHI: The political battle in the constituency represented by the state's chief minister is always watched with keen interest. When the challengers are veteran politicians and equally firebrand, it is sure to turn into a hot contest.
The triangular contest in Kalkaji, therefore, will be an intensely fought election this year. While it is indeed the seat that sent CM Atishi to the assembly for the first time in 2020, she has a fight on her hands, with former South Delhi MP Ramesh Bidhuri of BJP and Congress' Alka Lamba pitted against her.

Atishi began as an adviser on education to the AAP govt. After that she rose from being just an MLA to the busiest minister holding several important portfolios. Within three years, she became CM in the last leg of the seventh Delhi legislative assembly after Arvind Kejriwal resigned from the post.
Her tough rival Bidhuri is known for his strong organisational skills and connect with the rural population of south Delhi. However, his three assembly election wins in 2003, 2008 and 2013 came in the neighbouring seat of Tughlaqabad. Kalkaji is in a way his turf though because it falls in the South Delhi parliamentary constituency he represented twice in 2014 and 2019.
For Lamba, Kalkaji is new territory. She won her only assembly election — on an AAP ticket — from Chandni Chowk in 2015. She lost the subsequent election after shifting her allegiance back to Congress, her original party. The head of All India Mahila Morcha, Lamba is known for her oratory and support among party workers.
The high stakes involved has already resulted in frequent run-ins, allegations and counter-allegations, and complaints to the Election Commission by both AAP and BJP and the last few days before polling day will likely be as acrimonious.
The constituency is an interesting mix of upmarket residential areas, middle-class pockets, unauthorised colonies and slums. While pockets such as Maharani Bagh, Friends Colony and New Friends Colony exist in affluence, those like Govindpuri have a large population living cheek-by-jowl with shanty settlements.
The issues faced by the residents of this constituency vary from one area to another. While waterlogging and sewage backflow — especially during the monsoon — are a bane for areas such as New Friends Colony and Maharani Bagh, the middle-class areas of Kalkaji and East of Kailash regularly deal with traffic congestion, parking crunch, broken roads and missing footpaths, noise and air pollution and poorly maintained parks.
Residents believe the waste-to-energy plant near Sukhdev Vihar is not only an eyesore but a major health hazard. Those living in unauthorised colonies and jhuggi clusters struggle with poor sanitation and a water shortage, among other lacks. They have, however, benefited significantly from govt welfare schemes in recent years.
Atishi has made the constituency her home, with her parents living in one of the middle-class neighbourhoods. This, CM said, helped her build a bond with the electorate. She said she has contributed much to the constituency as an MLA, especially in water and sewage infrastructure, which were major drawbacks when she was elected due to a significant increase in population in already dense Govindpuri, Govindpuri Extension and Srinivaspuri. "Kalkaji was at the tail end of the water supply system and faced constant water crises. We improved water management substantially by replacing old pipelines, fixing leakages and installing valve operation systems, apart from repairing the road network," she said.
CM leaves aside her official work on weekends and spends time in the constituency, meeting residents and addressing local issues. Her colony-wise WhatsApp groups function as a single-window solution system for all residents. "In the next five years, improving roads is something I would like to work on, especially because we laid water and sewer lines and IGL lines extensively, which caused the roads to be dug up. I also feel that the quality of life in many areas is greatly influenced by the condition of parks, so developing them will be another focus area," Atishi said.
Bidhuri, of course, accuses Atishi of neglecting Kalkaji's basic infrastructure needs and cites the poor roads, waterlogging and lackadaisical sanitation as examples. He challenges her to list any development projects executed in the area during her tenure.
The BJP candidate claims that only a "double-engine" govt can ensure development of Kalkaji constituency. He also lists the promises made in the party's Sankalp Patra (manifesto) while affirming that all the current welfare schemes implemented by AAP will continue.
For her part, Lamba told TOI that potable water was a major problem, while overflowing nullahs, wires hanging overhead, littered roads and parks turning into parking lots were significant concerns. "These are basic issues that need urgent attention," said the Congress contestant. "People know that I did good work as an MLA in Chandni Chowk, so they would want to give Congress a chance in Kalkaji too," she added.