Shahdara Assembly Election 2025: The Shahdara Assembly constituency is poised for a high-stakes contest in the 2025 elections. Former BJP leader Jitender Singh Shunty, who joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), is set to contest from this seat. As a turncoat, he is expected to face a tough challenge in retaining the seat for the ruling party, with a fierce battle on the cards.
Key candidates
Shahdara Assembly Constituency has witnessed keen political contests over the years, with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) being the major contenders. The key candidates for the Shahdara seat this year are AAP candidate Jitender Singh Shunty, BJP leader Sanjay Goyal, Jagat Singh from Congress among others. AAP's Ram Niwas Goel is the incumbent MLA from this seat, however, the party changed its candidate this time.
It is pertinent to mention that in December 2024, Shunty, who had received the Padma Shri in 2021 for his services during the Covid-19 pandemic, joined AAP. His decision to switch parties came just months before the Delhi assembly elections, adding to the political dynamics leading up to the elections.
Shahdara Assembly Constituency
The Shahdara Assembly constituency is one of the 70 constituencies in the Delhi Legislative Assembly. It is constituency number 62 of the Delhi Legislative Assembly. The constituency is a general seat not reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs). Shahdara is part of the East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency.
The Shahdara Assembly Constituency, located in the northeastern part of Delhi, is an important area in the city's political landscape. The constituency is part of the Shahdara district, which serves as both an administrative and revenue district of Delhi. Situated near the banks of the Yamuna River, the district headquarters are in Nand Nagri. Shahdara is in close proximity to Central Delhi's historic Chandni Chowk and Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad, making it strategically significant.
Known for being one of the oldest inhabited areas in Delhi, Shahdara falls within the region of Old Delhi. The area near the GT Road toll is often referred to as Shahdara Border. The district itself was established in 2012 and has become an important part of the city's evolving urban and political framework.
Shahdara Constituency Demographic Profile
As per data from the Election Commission, there were 1,89,407 voters in the Shahdara constituency during the 2020 Assembly Elections. Out of this, 99,540 were male and 89,862 were female voters. No voter belonged to the third gender. 853 postal votes were cast in the constituency. The number of service voters in Shahdara in 2020 was 75 (61 men and 14 women).
In 2015, the total number of voters in the Shahdara constituency was 1,69,959. Out of this, 90,585 voters were male, 79,368 were female and six belonged to third gender. There were 510 valid postal votes in the constituency. The number of service voters in Shahdara in 2015 was 63 (37 men and 26 women).
What happened in the 2020 and 2015 Assembly Elections?
In the 2020 Delhi Assembly Elections, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Ram Niwas Goel won the seat with a margin of 5,294 votes (4.23%). He was polled 62,103 votes with a vote share of 49.53%. He defeated Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Sanjay Goyal, who got 56,809 votes (45.31%). Congress candidate Narendra Nath stood third with 4,474 votes (3.57%). The total number of valid votes polled was 1,25,383 (66.2%).
In the 2015, Delhi Assembly Elections, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Ram Niwas Goel won the seat. He was polled 58,523 votes with a vote share of 49.49%. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Jitender Singh Shunty got 46,792 votes (39.57%) and was the runner-up. Goel defeated Bedi by a margin of 11,731 votes (9.95%). The total number of valid votes polled in this constituency was 1,18,256 (69.58%). Congress candidate Narendra Nath came in third with 9,423 votes (7.97%) and Independent candidate Behen Preeti stood fourth with just 1,289 votes (1.09%).