Lok Sabha elections 2024: Bansuri Swaraj takes on Somnath Bharti in New Delhi’s face-off

Somnath Bharti; (right) Bansuri Swaraj. File pics/X

The New Delhi parliamentary constituency in the national capital is poised for an intriguing electoral battle, with the BJP and AAP set to lock horns. AAP has nominated Somnath Bharti, a seasoned three-term MLA from Malviya Nagar constituency, while BJP is banking on newcomer Bansuri Swaraj, daughter of the late former Union Minister Sushma Swaraj. Notably, both candidates boast legal backgrounds.

The elite voters from posh Safdarjung Enclave, where the longstanding grave issue of open drainage causing mosquito menace has not been solved in the last three decades by any politician, have announced to press None of The Above (NOTA) option to refuse to vote for either political party in the upcoming elections.

While BJP expresses confidence in sweeping all seven LS seats, AAP is determined to wrest the seat from their grasp, given Bharti's seasoned political acumen. "The politicians come and go, but our problems were never an important issue for them to resolve. The mosquito menace is huge in the area just because the open nullah has not been covered by the officials concerned. All the political parties are alike as they paid no heed to our deep concerns," said Akshay Kapoor, a local resident of Safdarjung Enclave, adding, "All the political parties lack will power to resolve the issue. So, it is better if we use the NOTA option during this Lok Sabha election."

Bansuri vs Bharti in New Delhi

No political party has secured consecutive wins in the LS polls for the New Delhi constituency. Taking no risk of losing the seat, the BJP has sidelined its sitting parliamentarian Meenakshi Lekhi to field a newbie Bansuri Swaraj, who has 15 years of experience in the legal profession.

Sources in the party said that Bansuri - the youngest BJP candidate in Delhi - joined BJP's student wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) as a worker nearly 25 years ago.

After her undergraduate studies in English Literature at the University of Warwick, the 41-year-old Swaraj pursued Law at the esteemed BPP Law School in London. Continuing her academic journey, she attained a Master of Studies from St Catherine's College at the University of Oxford.

Bansuri will have a tough fight on the political battlefield with AAP's Somnath Bharti, who is a native of Bihar's Hisua Nawada district and belongs to a humble family.

After completing his initial schooling in Bihar, Bharti embarked on a challenging yet captivating academic journey. He obtained his M.Sc. from IIT Delhi in 1997, followed by an LLB from Delhi University. Arriving in Delhi at the age of 18, Bharti faced formidable challenges in his early days. Initially residing in a communal dormitory at Sri Sis Ganj Gurdwara Sahib, he later found accommodation in a room.

Sources close to him said that throughout his college years, Bharti actively participated in dramatics, showcasing his remarkable talent and earning numerous accolades. To support himself financially during his schooling and college days, Bharti provided tuition across various subjects, particularly excelling in Mathematics. Known as a mathematics prodigy, he tutored students in Class 10th Olympiad mathematics while still in Class 8th, instilling confidence in his parents to entrust him with pursuing higher education in Delhi.

Bharti has brought numerous public interest issues to light through Public Interest Litigations (PILs). After pursuing law as a career, with a primary focus on Judicial Reforms, Bharti continuously challenged the governance system of the country in courtrooms through a plethora of PILs on behalf of the marginalised, the impoverished, and the illiterate in society. However, he eventually encountered a sense of repetitiveness in his efforts to provide relief to these vulnerable segments of society.

Bharti is an old supporter of Arvind Kejriwal whom he joined in 2010. He was elected as the AAP candidate for the Malviya Nagar constituency in the Delhi state Assembly elections in 2013 and was Minister of Law, Tourism, Administrative Reforms, Art & Culture in the Government of Delhi, from December 2013 to February 2014.

Local residents of Malviya Nagar dub him as an easy approachable politician, who strives to meet everyone.

North East Delhi clash

The situation is going to be likely the same for the North East Delhi constituency, where the BJP has fielded its sitting parliamentarian and former state presidnet Manoj Tiwari.

The Congress on Sunday announced former JNU Students Union president Kanhaiya Kumar as its candidate against the incumbent Manoj Tiwari.

There are a sizable number of Purvanchali (residents of Eastern UP and Bihar) and Muslim voters in North East Constituency.

Kumar, who is a native of Bihar and had contested 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Begusarai on CPI ticket but he lost, is known for his electrifying speeches. If the Congress fields him from the North East Delhi seat, he will give a tough fight to the sitting parliamentarian Tiwari.

7
No. of seats in Delhi