New Delhi, March 29
Contrary to perception, the South Delhi Lok Sabha seat with a total of nearly 17.2 lakh registered voters is predominantly a rural constituency with six of its assembly segments comprising the rural belt while four others - Kalkaji, Mehrauli, Ambedkar Nagar and Chattarpur - constitute a mixed demography of electorate in urban colonies, slums and resettlement colonies.

It is traditionally considered to be a stronghold of the BJP until 2009 when following delimitation with inclusion of a major chunk of erstwhile outer Delhi constituency, Congress' sitting MP Ramesh Kumar (58) snatched the seat away from the BJP breaking its marathon spell of two decades.

This time around in South Delhi given the promising presence of the AAP which won three assembly seats - Sangam Vihar, Deoli and Ambedkar Nagar - the last two previously being the Congress' bastions, the seat is witnessing a triangular contest. The remaining seven - Palam, Mehrauli, Chhattarpur, Kalkaji, Badarpur and Tughlakabad - were a part of the BJP's winning assembly tally.

BJP's three-time MLA of Tughlakabad Ramesh Bidhuri (52), who also happens to be the only losing candidate that his party has repeated, is pitted against senior Congress leader Sajjan Kumar's brother of Ramesh Kumar, who had trounced Bidhuri in the 2009 general elections by a margin of 93,219 votes.

The third major contender is AAP's Col Devender Sehrawat (48), an IIT-Ahemdabad alumni who unsuccessfully contested the last assembly polls from Bijwasan. He attributes his loss to bogus voting and expresses confidence of making it big in the Lok Sabha polls, saying the country needs "real, not cosmetic change".

"The Congress is irrelevant and it is natural justice which is being executed in the form of the AAP that the country gets the next better alternative instead of those who do not have to do anything with the ground realities," said Col Sehrawat.

Bidhuri is banking not only on his usual support base from his local Gujjar community, but is also hopeful of garnering support of urban sections constituting of about nearly two lakh voters in the constituency.

He is targeting to strengthen his support base in the posh localities of Kalkaji, Saket, Vasant Kunj, Vasant Vihar, Pushp Vihar, Madangir and semi-urban Chhattarpur.

"People are fed up with the Congress due to corruption and the AAP has betrayed their faith. Our vote share has been 32 per cent and in the Lok Sabha it would be that 30 plus another 20 per cent due to Modi's name. This will dent both the Congress and the AAP," says Bidhuri.

Congress' Ramesh Kumar known as the worst-performing MP having spent only Rs 3.03 crore from the total allocated MPLADS Rs 10.32 crore is facing an anti-incumbency factor with a host of issues something that his political opponents are capitalising. But the Jat support is something that he can certainly rely on.

South Delhi has about 54-55 villages and its population comprises 31.64 per cent OBCs, SCs (18.47), Brahmins (9.38), Gujjars (9.4), Muslims (6.05), Punjabis (5.3 pc), Jats (5.29) while others constitute 14.83 per cent. Besides the three, among the total 19 candidates in fray, noticeable are BSp's Poorvanchali leader Sanjay Kumar Rai and independent candidate "Mrs Beauty Queen" Ruby Yadav.

New Delhi, March 29
BJP candidate in North East Delhi Manoj Tewari today assured the electorates of changing the face of the entire constituency with the development, if he is voted to power.

While visiting to Burari, Pradhan Enclave, Nathupura, Kushak, Sant Nagar, Tiwari, a famous Bhojpuri singer said that he is a resident of the Trans-Yamuna area. “I have seen no development in the area in for the last some years. Sitting Congress MP Jai Prakash Agarwal has never visited the locality. He remembers the constituency after five years for getting the votes”, he said.

Tewari said that he is interested to do the work for the society and appealed the electorates to vote for him to make the Narendra Modi government at the Centre.

He was accompanied by former local MLA Kishan Tyagi and other local leaders.

He was welcomed in the area where people of East UP and Bihar were present in majority. They came to see him as they had seen him on TV sets in many programmes. In other areas there was not impressive rush.

Mahender Singh, who originally belongs to Uttarakhand and has been living in the area for the past 15 years, said "He wanted to vote for the BJP. But there is no influential local leader. Tewari is a new face. He is a singer. He has joined the power to enjoy power."

Susheel Kumar, who lives at Nathupura, said the Congress is responsible for inflation and corruption.

The BJP has fielded Manoj Tewari who is a first timer and AAP has given ticket to an intellectual. The Congress has a sitting MP, Jai Prakash Agarwal. It is difficult for the voters to decide among them.

New Delhi, March 29
BJP Delhi Election Campaign Committee chairman Prof Vijay Kumar Malhotra today said that there are some pockets in Batla House where the police cannot enter.

Addressing a conference Prof Malhora said, "We want Muslim votes. It is our duty to protect Muslims in the country. But we do not want vote of terrorists."

When asked how many terrorists are enrolled with the electoral roll, he said "non".

When asked was he called by the RSS after his statement appeared in media that Jamia Nagar is a hub of terrorists, Malhotra said "this is not a question. I have been member of the RSS since 1947 and I am proud of it."

Talking about elections, he said that the BJP would release a manifesto for the Lok Sabha constituencies in Delhi on April 2.

Entire Jamia Nagar area falls under the East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency. BJP candidate from East Delhi Mahesh Giri, who also shared the dais, said, "I have been working in the area for the past four years. I visit there as a social worker. ".

Condemning the statement of Prof Malhotra, Delhi BJP Minority Cell chairman Atif Rasheed said, "I live in Batla House. It is very safe. The area is not a terrorist hub."

"Statement given by Prof Malhotra is shocking. Even Narendra Modi, has never given such a statement. In a recently held rally at Shastri Park Modi said that he did not represent any community or caste. He is leader of entire countrymen. He has given a slogan "sabke saath, sabka vikas".

New Delhi, March 29
Ggeneral secretary of the Socialist Party Prof Prem Singh is contesting from the East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency against Congress' sitting MP Sandeep Dikshit, BJP's Mahesh Giri and AAP's Prof Raj Mohan Gandhi.

Former Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court Justice Rajindar Sachar has backed his candidature appealing others to support him in the elections. In a letter he has sought support from civil society and others, adding that the Janata Dal (United) too has extended active support to Prof Singh.

This is not the first time as he has contested the Lok Sabha elections from East Delhi as an independent in 2009 and is said to have made a good impact by his speeches, pro-Constitution manifesto and austere election campaign.

A Hindi teacher of Delhi University, Prof Singh is a former fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, and has authored several books and articles on contemporary political, social, cultural, educational issues from Gandhian and Lohian perspective.

Earlier a member of the Samajwadi Jan Parishad, he has been fighting for the cause of the deprived sections - Dalits, Adivasis, OBCs, women, minorities, farmers, labourers, artisans, small traders, etc.

New Delhi, March 29
With the arrest of a man, Prax, officials of the Custom Department at IGI Airport seized 18 kg gold worth Rs 494.62 lakh from him.

Prax arrived at Delhi from Bahrain yesterday.

According to a statement released by the Commissioner of Customs, on detailed examination of Prax's baggage, nothing objectionable was found.

But on his personal search, 18 gold bars weighing 18 kg which he had concealed in the secret pockets of his trousers and inner jacket were found.

The gold was seized under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962, and Pax was arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act.

New Delhi, March 29
The Crime Branch of the Delhi Police today claimed to have arrested a man on charges of drug trafficking from near Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.

He has been identified as Anumulagundam Soma Shekhar, a businessman in Chittoor district, Hyderabad. He has MBA degree from Indian School of Business Management.

He is allegedly an operative of international drug trafficking module. Eight kg of fine quality of heroin was seized from his possession, said a police officer.

During interrogation, Shekhar said that he entered the drug trafficking due to the losses he had in his business of crusher. An NRI, Rajni, to whom Shekhar met in 2008, allegedly brought him to this crime.

Rajni proposed him to pay Rs1 lakh for per kg apart from the travel expenses to smuggle heroin from Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. As Shekhar was under financial crisis, he immediately consented to be part of this illicit trade.

Shekhar went to Srinagar via Delhi last month to reccee the route and to meet the supplier Muneer, a contact of Rajni. Ten days ago, Shekhar again went to Srinagar via Delhi and carried two kg of heroin and supplied to Rajni's contacts in Hyderabad. This successful delivery gave him confidence. He made another trip to Srinagar and took 8 kg of heroin on March 26. He took train from Jammu to Delhi but alighted at Ghaziabad. Thereafter, he again took a local train to Delhi.

On Thursday, he was going to Nizamuddin Railway Station with drugs when he was caught red-handed by police.