Bhupendra Chaubey - Dilli Raajneeti with Bhupendra Chaubey (Part 2) lyrics

Our 2nd stop in Dilli Rajneeti is Ram Leela Maidan. Yes, the same spot where Arvind Kejriwal famously took oath in December 2013. The same spot where Jai Prakash Narayan had mobilised a lakh and a half citizens in 1975, posing a challenge to Indira Gandhi. And now, this is the place which best captures the change that one is witnessing in Delhi. On the 17th of January, Prime Minister Modi was scheduled to address a rally here with the aim to swing the tide in BJP's favor. On the contrary, the event only exposed the sharp fault lines which exist within the Delhi unit of the party. Delhi BJP has always been a bitterly divided party. Much in the same way, the BJP was at the centre when LK Advani was the BJP president. The BJP suffered largely between 2004 and 2014 as it couldn't settle the leadership issue at the centre. After Vajpayee there was an Advani, but after Advani who? It took some time for Modi to appear on the scene, and when he did, we all know what happened to Advani. Similarly, the likes of Vijay Goel, Jagdish Mukhi, Dr Harshawardhan, all Delhi BJP stalwarts, fell by the wayside since Modi just wasn't impressed with what he saw at Ramleela Maidan. A ground which was supposed to be packed to capacity and managed only around 40 to 50 thousand. The BJP moved in quickly, thereafter, to declare Kiran Bedi as its chief ministerial candidate. It's this sharp turn by the BJP which is being viewed with skepticism in areas around Ram Leela Maidan. As we walk in, we see an MCD truck towing away a cart and an LPG cylinder of a roadside vendor who was about to start his day, selling tea and bread pakoras. We ask him if this was a regular occurrence. He tells me,” The only time this didn't happen was when Arvind Kejriwal was the CM during his 49-day stint. For the poor of Delhi, he is the best choice ." We move towards Daryaganj, via Dilli Gate. Dilli 6, as the entire area is known, is dominated by minorities. During the Lok Sabha elections, because of the sheer expanse of the area, BJP's Harshwardhan managed to trounce the AAP and the Congress by a margin of over a lakh votes. During the 2013 a**embly elections, out of 10 a**embly seats here, the spoils were pretty evenly divided. 4 to AAP, 3 to BJP, 1 to Congress and 2 to independents. Now with the Congress facing more humiliation, questions are being asked about the minority vote. We meet the guard at the old Golcha cinema. One of the last few single screen cinema halls still operational. We ask him if the minority vote is gravitating towards the Congress. "Why should we be beholden to just the Congress. Look, the moot point is - people voted for Modi during the Lok Sabha elections. But a lot of my friends believe that Delhi will be served best if there can be a combination of Kejriwal in Delhi and Modi at the centre." The comment does carry weight. Many opinion polls indicate the same. Overwhelming number of Modi supporters during the Lok Sabha polls are looking at Kejriwal as a favoured choice during the a**embly polls. The BJP is being forced to change tactic just 3 weeks before the polling day. The key factor across Pahargunj, Chandnichowk and Matiyamahal is the minority vote. Will the minorities desert the Congress and shift towards AAP? This could be the X factor which could impact the calculations of all parties in the fray. You can watch Episode 2 of Rajneeti With Bhupendra Chaubey here.