Targeting Muslim minority voters in the Delhi Assembly elections, Rahul Gandhi is set to begin his campaign. After returning from Vietnam, Rahul Gandhi will hold his first public meeting on Monday in Seelampur, Delhi.
Seelampur, located in Northeast Delhi, is one of the capital’s key Muslim-majority areas. In 2020, during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), this region witnessed significant communal violence, causing numerous casualties. At that time, Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) faced allegations of not standing by the minority community.
According to Indian media, Congress aims to capitalize on this discontent among minorities. Party leaders also hope to attract Dalit and OBC votes.
Qazi Nizamuddin, Congress leader in charge of Delhi at the All India Congress Committee (AICC), stated that Rahul Gandhi will hold a public meeting in Seelampur on Monday under the slogan “Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan” (Victory to Gandhi, Victory to Ambedkar, Victory to the Constitution). This will be Rahul’s first rally for the Delhi elections, whereas Narendra Modi has already held two rallies.
Voting in Delhi’s 70 Assembly constituencies will be held on February 5. According to the 2011 Census, Muslims make up over 12% of Delhi’s population. Seven constituencies, including Chandni Chowk, Mustafabad, Matia Mahal, Babarpur, Seelampur, Okhla, and Ballimaran, have significant Muslim populations.
In the last Assembly elections, AAP won all seven of these seats with a significant margin. However, discontent emerged after AAP’s MLAs remained inactive during the communal violence in Northeast Delhi.
Muslim voters, however, remain skeptical of Congress as well. In Seelampur, Congress’s candidate from the previous election left the party. As a result, AAP is seen as the only alternative against BJP.
With Rahul Gandhi leading the charge, Congress is now attempting to rebuild trust among its old Muslim vote bank.