BSP to contest in 70 seats in Delhi

New Delhi: Confident of giving a tough fight to Congress and BJP, Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party, which surprised many by ranking third in 2008 Assembly elections with a vote share of 14 per cent, is all to set announce its candidates for all the 70 seats in Delhi.

"We are contesting on all 70 seats like we did the last time. We have already finalised our candidates for 61 seats and the announcement can come anytime now," said BSP's Delhi in-charge Ram Achal Rajbhar. The party is banking on its traditional support base of Dalit community and trying to woo Muslims ahead of the December 4 vote.

"We will connect with people from 'sarv samaj' – all communities. We will bring SCs, STs and Muslims together.
During our regime in Uttar Pradesh not a single riot took place but both the Samajwadi Party at the state and Congress failed to prevent such incidents," said Rajbhar, who was a cabinet minister in all governments led by Mayawati.

The party has been making slow but steady strides in the national capital although the contest mainly remained between Congress and BJP in the last four assembly polls since 1993. In 1998, the party had received around three per cent votes which soared to around nine per cent in 2003.