21:00 That's it from us on another eventful day as AAP conducted a post-mortem of its massive election defeat. The focus was more on keeping the flock together rather than allegations of EVM tampering.
It will be interesting to see what the party does from here with just two years to go for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. We'll have plenty of analysis, so stay tuned. Thank you!
19:45 A reminder of the slew of AAP resignations today. Party leaders Dilip Pandey and Ashish Talwar have also offered to step down from their respective posts after the loss in the municipal body elections.
18:40 More on that oath which Kejriwal made the 48 new AAP councillors take. Here's the build-up (translated from Hindi):
"They may offer you a lot of money, even up to Rs 10 crore... but if you take this, you will regret it, pay a heavy price all your life."
And then he made his colleagues recite the following:
"With God as my witness, I pledge never to ditch this pure party or betray the (anti-corruption) movement."
17:44 Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Som Dutt has been summoned as an accused by a court for allegedly giving false information in his affidavit filed before the Election Commission during the 2015 Delhi Assembly polls.
16:30 Attempting to keep the flock together, Kejriwal also made the councillors take an "oath of purity".
15:50 During the meeting at his residence, Kejriwal also told the party workers to stay loyal and not leave AAP for "BJP money".
15:45: Arvind Kejriwal is holding a meeting of the newly-elected AAP councillors. He tells them to keep a check on corruption in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
15:30 Sanjay Singh, the party’s election in-charge in Punjab, offered to resign on Thursday morning, while Chandni Chowk MLA Alka Lamba said she would step down as no party candidate won in wards falling in her constituency.
Here is Sanjay Singh's tweet:
मैंने पंजाब के प्रभारी पद से अपना इस्तीफ़ा राष्ट्रीय संयोजक @ArvindKejriwal जी को दे दिया है, दुर्गेश ने भी सह प्रभारी पद छोड़ा।— Sanjay Singh AAP (@SanjayAzadSln) April 27, 2017
15:15 Cracks have already started appearing in the party with MP Bhagwant Mann criticising the management of elections in Punjab, and Kumar Vishwas indirectly criticising Kejriwal’s defence of partymen under corruption scanner.
15:00 EVM tampering still appears to be a key issue for AAP.
Greater Kailash MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj said it is still a priority. “EVMs were discussed, but it was not the main agenda of the meet. We are looking at two issues. EVM tampering is the first, we lost because this is happening on a national-level. If this is solved, only then will we move to the second issue, which is that we lost because people are upset,” he said.
14:00 After a day of letting the results sink in, AAP leaders are now in introspection mode.
The Aam Aadmi Party held an emergency meeting at the residence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal even as offers of resignation poured in from party leaders over the recent string of electoral losses.
19:00 That's it from us on another successful day for the BJP. We've got plenty of analysis for you, so stay tuned to our home page. You can read a summary of the day's events below:
MCD election counting complete: BJP wins 184 wards, AAP distant second with 46
18:25 While Kejriwal refrained from mentioning EVMs, his AAP colleagues minced no words.
AAP leader Ashutosh said: “Most of the EVMs were malfunctioning. It was not possible that the votes were going to the BJP when AAP has done a lot for education and healthcare in Delhi.”
17:55 A damning report that came out ahead of the elections could well have contributed to AAP's drubbing. Read our piece.
17:30 Here's what BJP president Amit Shah had to say on another happy day for the party.
“MCD election results have pushed Modi’s victory chariot forward... The results show negative politics won’t work... I congratulate Manoj Tiwari and all our party workers,” he said.
17:00: And we finally have a tweet from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. No mention of EVMs this time:
I congratulate BJP on their victory in all 3 MCDs. My govt looks forward to working wid MCDs for the betterment of Delhi— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) April 26, 2017
16:30: We now have a complete winners list by ward and party, so find out who won in your area:
Delhi MCD Election 2017: Complete ward and party-wise winners list
15:55 AAP's MLA from Chandni Chowk, Alka Lamba, has offered to resign after taking responsibility's for the party's poor show in her area.
15:45 Here's the break-up from South Delhi Municipal Corporation:
BJP: 70
AAP: 16
Congress: 12
15:30: In fact, the numbers for all three corporations are in: Here's the final tally:
BJP – 184 wards
AAP – 46 wards
Congress – 30 wards
Others - 10 wards
Polling in two other wards was cancelled after candidates’ deaths.
Narendra Modi was sworn in as India's prime minister, in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh May 26, 2014. Modi was sworn in as India's prime minister in an elaborate ceremony at New Delhi's resplendent presidential palace on Monday, after a sweeping election victory that ended two terms of rule by the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. REUTERS/Ajay Verma (INDIA - Tags: POLITICS FOOD) - RTR3QXUD" width="378" height="213" /> FILE PHOTO
15:25: We've received the final figures from the North Delhi Municipal Corporation. Here they are:
BJP - 66
AAP - 20
Congress - 15
Others - 2
15:15 More allegations from the AAP camp regarding tampering of voting machines.
Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia says EVM tampering is a bitter truth in India.
"One can crack jokes on us initially, but fearing being made fun of, we cannot refrain from speaking the truth," Sisodia said.
15:00 Congress' Delhi in-charge PC Chacko has offered to resign over the party's rout.
14:50 PM: Reaction coming in from Puducherry Lt Governor Kiran Bedi. A key member of the 2011 anti-corruption movement, she was the BJP's CM face for Delhi just two years ago. How things have changed since then...
'New Delhi'...
That's it from us on another eventful day as AAP conducted a post-mortem of its massive election defeat. The focus was more on keeping the flock together rather than allegations of EVM tampering.
It will be interesting to see what the party does from here with just two years to go for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. We'll have plenty of analysis, so stay tuned. Thank you!
A reminder of the slew of AAP resignations today. Party leaders Dilip Pandey and Ashish Talwar have also offered to step down from their respective posts after the loss in the municipal body elections.
More on that oath which Kejriwal made the 48 new AAP councillors take. Here's the build-up (translated from Hindi):
"They may offer you a lot of money, even up to Rs 10 crore... but if you take this, you will regret it, pay a heavy price all your life."
And then he made his colleagues recite the following:
"With God as my witness, I pledge never to ditch this pure party or betray the (anti-corruption) movement."
Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Som Dutt has been summoned as accused by a court for allegedly giving false information in his affidavit filed before the Election Commission during the 2015 Delhi Assembly polls.
Attempting to keep the flock together, Kejriwal also made the councillors take an "oath of purity".
During the meeting at his residence, Kejriwal also told his party workers to stay loyal and not leave AAP for "BJP money".
Arvind Kejriwal is holding a meeting of the newly-elected AAP councillors. He tells them to keep a check on corruption in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
Cracks have already started appearing in the party with MP Bhagwant Mann criticising the management of elections in Punjab, and Kumar Vishwas indirectly criticising Kejriwal’s defence of partymen under the corruption scanner.
EVM tampering still appears to be a key issue for AAP.
Greater Kailash MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj said it is still a priority. “EVMs were discussed, but it was not the main agenda of the meet. We are looking at two issues. EVM tampering is the first, we lost because this is happening on a national-level. If this is solved, only then will we move to the second issue, which is that we lost because people are upset,” he said
Sanjay Singh, the party’s election in-charge in Punjab, offered to resign on Thursday morning, while Chandni Chowk MLA Alka Lamba said she would step down as no party candidate won in wards falling in her constituency.
After a day of letting the results sink in, AAP leaders are now in introspection mode.
The Aam Aadmi Party held an emergency meeting at the residence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal even as offers of resignation poured in from party leaders over the recent string of electoral losses.
That's it from us on another successful day for the BJP. We've got plenty of analysis for you, so stay tuned to our home page. You can read a summary of the day's events here. Thank you!
While Kejriwal refrained from mentioning EVMs, his AAP colleagues minced no words.
AAP leader Ashutosh said: “Most of the EVMs were malfunctioning. It was not possible that the votes were going to the BJP when AAP has done a lot for education and healthcare in Delhi.”
