The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged ahead in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) bypolls on Wednesday, winning seven of the twelve wards, while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) secured three, and the Congress and the All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) picked up one seat each.
The bypolls were held in wards previously dominated by the BJP, which earlier controlled nine of the twelve seats. The remaining three were held by AAP. Voter turnout stood at 38.51%, significantly lower than the 50.47% recorded in the 2022 full-scale MCD elections for 250 wards.
Counting was conducted under heavy security at ten centres across Delhi, including Kanjhawala, Pitampura, Bharat Nagar, Civil Lines, Rouse Avenue, Dwarka, Najafgarh, Gole Market, Pushp Vihar and Mandawali. Nearly 1,800 police personnel, supported by paramilitary forces, were deployed.
The BJP secured its first victory early with Suman Kumar Gupta winning Chandni Chowk by 1,182 votes. This was followed by Anita Jain’s triumph in Shalimar Bagh B, previously represented by current Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta. Other BJP winners included Manisha Devi (Dwarka B), Sarla Choudhry (Vinod Nagar), Veena Asija (Vinod Nagar), Anjum Mandal (Greater Kailash) and Rekha Rani (Dichaon Kalan). Despite its overall lead, the BJP failed to retain two of its earlier seats.
AAP won three wards: Ram Swaroop Kanojia in Dakshin Puri, Anil in Mundka, and Rajan Arora in Naraina. The Congress captured Sangam Vihar A, while the AIFB claimed Chandni Mahal.
Several wards drew particular interest. Shalimar Bagh B was vacated after Chief Minister Rekha Gupta moved to the Assembly, while Dwarka B had been unrepresented since 2024, when Kamaljeet Sehrawat was elected to Parliament from West Delhi.
In total, 51 candidates contested the bypolls, including 26 women. The BJP fielded eight women, AAP six and Congress five.
