Sources in BJP’s Delhi unit said that the party views the 2025 elections as a “golden opportunity” and wants to reach out to all castes to ensure a win. In the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections, the BJP managed a vote share of 38.5 percent despite winning only 8 seats, while AAP’s vote share, with 62 seats, was 53.6 percent—marginally below its 54.2 percent in 2015.
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A senior BJP leader in the Delhi unit told ThePrint that the party is concentrating on specific castes residing in certain parts of the national capital, including Jats, Gujjars and Yadavs, to ensure “not a single segment is left untouched”.
On Saturday, senior BJP leader and Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar chaired a meeting to review the preparations made by the various Haryana leaders and discuss further strategies. The meeting was attended by Rajya Sabha MP Kiran Choudhry, Haryana Ministers Krishan Panwar and Krishan Bedi, and former ministers J.P. Dalal, Kamlesh Dhanda, Banwari Lal and Aseem Goel.
Prominent Jat leaders, such as Haryana Minister Mahi Pal Dhanda, Kiran Choudhary, and J.P. Dalal, had been tasked with overseeing districts dominated by the community. This included Delhi’s Najafgarh, Mundka, Matiala, Bawana, and Narela.
“Jats are essentially concentrated in rural and semi-rural areas of Delhi and if we talk about districts then it would be the outer districts of Delhi. The idea behind deploying Haryana leaders is to ensure they use their personal influence to ensure the people vote for the BJP,” a party functionary from the Delhi unit said.
The responsibilities of the Haryana leaders included ensuring efficient coordination, addressing local issues, and mobilising resources to strengthen the party’s outreach across the national capital.
For Gujjar-dominated constituencies, the party deputed MP Krishan Pal Gurjar and MLA Kanwar Pal Gujjar. Some of the key constituencies in Delhi include Chhatarpur, Mehrauli, Deoli, and Tughlaqabad.
A major Gujjar leader, Ramesh Bidhuri, is also contesting from the Kalkaji assembly constituency this time. “Largely Gurjars are concentrated in south and south-east Delhi and especially in rural and peri-urban zones. Some of these areas border Haryana’s Gurgaon,” the party functionary quoted above added.
At the same time, the party also deputed four Dalit leaders, including Krishan Panwar, Banwari Lal, and former MP Sunita Duggal, to the Scheduled Caste (SC)-dominated constituencies of Delhi, such as Seemapuri, Karawal Nagar, Trilokpuri, Bawana, and Ambedkar Nagar.
Sunita Duggal, who is overseeing the Devli (SC) assembly segment—which the BJP gave to National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partner Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas)—said that some leaders have been assigned responsibilities at the district level, encompassing four to five assembly segments, while others have been given individual constituencies to manage.
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Delhi’s evolving political landscape
According to Jyoti Mishra, a researcher at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), the voting patterns in Delhi Assembly elections over the last 15 years reflect significant shifts in caste-based preferences, highlighting the evolving political landscape of the capital.
Mishra told ThePrint, “In the 2013 elections, the BJP emerged as the preferred party for upper-caste groups, securing 45 percent of the Brahmin vote and 37 percent from Rajputs. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), a newcomer at the time, gained support among marginalised communities, with 36 percent of Dalits and a similar proportion of OBCs (Other Backward Classes) backing the party.”
“The 2015 elections marked a major shift, with AAP consolidating its position as a formidable force across caste lines. Dalits, Muslims, and Sikhs overwhelmingly supported the party.”
She further explained, “Even among the BJP’s traditionally strong base of Brahmins, AAP captured 42 percent of the vote, signalling its expanding appeal. The BJP, however, retained significant support among Brahmins (48 percent), Baniyas (59 percent), and Jats (56 percent), while Congress’s relevance continued to diminish.”
By 2020, while AAP solidified its dominance and secured massive support from Dalits (67 percent) and Muslims (83 percent), it also drew support from upper-caste groups, she said.
“While the BJP remained the preferred choice for upper castes such as Brahmins, Rajputs, and Jats, AAP’s ability to attract votes from these groups reflected its broad-based appeal, with nearly two in five voters from these communities also voting for AAP.”
The trends underscore AAP’s emergence as a unifying force among marginalised communities like Dalits, OBCs (including Gujjars and Yadavs), and religious minorities, even as BJP maintained its stronghold among upper castes, Mishra added.
Haryana’s influence on Delhi polls
Giving further details of the party’s plan, a BJP functionary in the Delhi unit said the party tasked four Jat leaders from Haryana to campaign in assembly constituencies that share their border with Haryana and have a significant Jat population.
There are 12-14 such constituencies, including Najafgarh, Narela, Badarpur, Mehrauli, and Chattarpur, and a specific campaign for each of these constituencies has been prepared.
“The idea is to talk about the Haryana model of development and how the people reposed their faith in a Modi government not once, but thrice, and how having a BJP-led government in the state and Centre helps in overall development. Being a neighbouring state, people can actually understand it much more,” said a party leader from the Delhi unit.
The central leadership has deputed Khattar to coordinate with the team that has been deputed from Haryana.
“There are about a dozen assembly seats of Haryana around Delhi. Apart from this, there are a number of leaders hailing from Haryana who have a personal connect and influence in Delhi. Such leaders have been asked to canvas for the party candidates,” said another BJP Delhi unit leader.
A senior BJP leader said that apart from coordinating the preparations, as the top Punjabi leader in the BJP today, Khattar has also been put in charge of a few seats in West Delhi. Patel Nagar, Punjabi Bagh and Rajouri Garden, which are part of West Delhi, have a sizeable Punjabi community.
During Saturday’s review meeting at Khattar’s residence, leaders were asked to provide detailed feedback on the work done so far and, especially, to identify the weaknesses.
Speaking to ThePrint, Sudesh Kataria, Khattar’s media coordinator, said it was an exercise aimed at assessing the campaign’s progress and strategising for the remaining phase.
“Leaders were also asked to suggest measures to address the shortcomings effectively,” he said.
Earlier, both Khattar and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini also accompanied BJP candidates when they filed their nomination. For instance, earlier this month, Saini accompanied Dushyant Gautam, who is contesting from the reserved seat of Karol Bagh, while Khattar accompanied senior party leader and MLA Vijender Gupta, the candidate from the Rohini constituency.
However, Mishra said there seemed “to be no wider implications of the Haryana assembly election results” on Delhi.
“On one hand, (in Haryana) both OBCs, including Gurjars and Yadavs, supported the BJP, while on the other hand, Jats backed the Congress. In Delhi, however, we observed the reverse trend: Jats, along with upper castes, are voting for the BJP, while OBCs, including Gurjars and Yadavs, are supporting the AAP.”
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
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