MCD Polls: Those calling themselves honest will get befitting reply, asserts Meenakashi Lekhi
Dec 04, 2022
New Delhi [India], December 4 : Union Minister Meenakashi Lekhi on Sunday said that the people will give a "befitting" reply to the ones who call themselves honest.
In a conversation after casting her vote in the MCD elections 2022 at a polling booth in South Extension Part 2, Meenakashi Lekhi said, "People who call themselves honest will get a befitting reply from Delhi's voters."
Attacking the jailed Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) minister Satyendar Jain, Lekhi also said that the activities of AAP ministers are out before everyone.
"What AAP ministers are doing inside the jail and whatever facilities the Delhi government is providing has come before the world. Even after all this, that person is still a minister. Kejriwal should rather tell how many honest relations he has," she added.
Further, after casting her vote, Lekhi said that she has full faith in the Bharatiya Janata Party to come to power in MCD once again.
An inquiry committee report on the purported leaked CCTV footage of Satyendar Jain from the Tihar jail had made massive claims regarding the "special facilities" given to the jailed Delhi Minister.
The Committee, comprising Pr. Secy. (Home), Pr. Secy. (Law) and Secy. (Vigilance), said that Jain "violated norms and rules of the prison" and also "misused his official position and authority".
The voting for civic body polls is underway amid tight security across the national capital.
However, the cold Delhi winter affects the voting trends in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections as only around 9 per cent of voters' turnout was recorded till 10:30 am on Sunday, as per the State Election Commission.
Over 1.45 crore people are eligible to vote in civic polls in which 1,349 candidates are in the fray, setting the stage for the high-stakes civic polls largely seen as a three-way contest between the BJP, the AAP and the Congress.
The counting of votes will be done on December 7.
According to data shared by the State Election Commission officials, the total number of voters in Delhi is 1,45,05,358 -- 78,93,418 males, 66,10,879 females and 1,061 transgender persons. There are 250 wards in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).
Delhi State Election Commission has set up 13,638 polling stations for the elections.
The State Election Commission said a large workforce of election functionaries and security agencies have put humungous efforts to make necessary preparations for conducting elections at 13,638 polling stations spread across Delhi.
68 Model Polling Stations have been set up with facilities including a waiting area/lounge, distribution of candies/toffees to voters, a selfie booth and Civil Defence Volunteers to help PwD/senior citizens.
68 Pink booths have been set up with facilities including all-female staff at the polling station, a feeding room for lactating mothers, a creche facility for small kids accompanying voters, swings for kids, selfie booth.
The Commission said it has made elaborate arrangements for "safe, secure and pleasant" voting experience. These measures are required to keep the electoral field free and to ensure that a level playing field is afforded to all political parties and candidates.
Both the AAP and the BJP have exuded confidence that they will emerge victorious in the polls while the Congress is trying to regain lost turf.
This is the first civic election after the fresh delimitation exercise. There were 272 wards in Delhi and three corporations- NDMC, SDMC, and EDMC in Delhi from 2012-2022 that later reunified into an MCD that had formally come into existence on May 22.
