Delhi election results: How friend-turned-foe Congress hurt AAP more than BJP despite its own poor show | India News

NEW DELHI: J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah said it all – ‘Aur lado aapas mein’. The decade-long rule of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has ended in Delhi and Omar’s tweet has said it all. As Delhi dealt a major blow to Kejriwal’s party, Omar’s tweet summed it all – the decision of AAP and Congress to go solo might have served Delhi on a platter to BJP.
Former chief minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, chose to contest independently, shutting down any possibility of an alliance with Congress even before the election dates were announced.

According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), the BJP is set to form the government in Delhi after 27 years, with 47 seats, while AAP could secure only 23 seats. Congress, on the other hand, failed to open its account for the third consecutive time.

The decision of AAP and Congress to go solo seems to have played a decisive role in splitting the anti-BJP vote.
A closer analysis of the election data suggests that an AAP-Congress alliance could have altered the results in at least 15 seats. The combined vote share of the two parties in key constituencies like Rajinder Nagar, Chhatarpur, Sangam Vihar, Greater Kailash, and others shows that AAP could have emerged victorious had it contested with Congress’ support.

With Congress failing to make an impact on its own, a partnership could have provided both parties with a stronger electoral footing.
For instance, in Rajinder Nagar, AAP secured 45,440 votes while Congress got 4,015. If these votes were combined, AAP’s tally would have reached 49,455, enough to defeat the BJP. Similarly, in Chhatarpur, AAP’s 74,230 votes combined with Congress’s 6,601 would have pushed the total to 80,831, securing a win. The same pattern holds in other constituencies like Sangam Vihar, Greater Kailash, and Timarpur, where an alliance could have led to AAP’s victory.
In seats like Badli and Nangloi Jat, Congress’s strong presence further underlines how a joint front could have been a game-changer. In Badli, AAP secured 35,668 votes while Congress got 31,130. Their combined tally of 66,798 would have comfortably beaten the BJP. Nangloi Jat tells a similar story, with AAP’s 48,907 votes and Congress’s 31,918 combining for a total of 80,825—enough to win the seat.
Even in tight contests such as in Narela and Bijwasan, where BJP barely edged ahead, an AAP-Congress alliance might have changed the final outcome. In Narela, AAP’s 71,154 votes combined with Congress’s 5,924 would have brought the total to 77,078, just short of BJP’s 77,755 in the 19th round of counting. A similar scenario played out in Bijwasan, where AAP’s 52,544 votes and Congress’s 9,039 fell marginally short of BJP’s 62,377.

Here are the seats that AAP could have won had it been in alliance with Congress:

Data as per latest EC figures
Beyond numbers, the election results signal a potential strategic miscalculation by AAP. While the party has governed Delhi for a decade, its recent friction with Congress over seat-sharing in other states might have influenced its decision to contest alone. The split in opposition votes ultimately benefited BJP, allowing it to regain control of Delhi after nearly three decades.