Najafgarh seat: AAP's Kailash Gahlot sets record by re-election

The Najafgarh Assembly constituency, having a major population of farmers and traders, has never elected an MLA twice, but the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) sitting legislator and Cabinet Minister Kailash Gahlot sets a new record on Tuesday by being elected for a second time from the seat.

He has won the Assembly election with a margin of 6,231 votes, defeating Ajeet Singh Kharkhari of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Part of the West Delhi Lok Sabha constituency, Najafgarh is located in the outskirts of Delhi, near the Haryana border.

Named after Mirza Najaf Khan, the commander-in-chief of the Mughal Army under Shah Alam II, the area is also famous for being a part of the First War of Indian Independence -- the 1857 revolt. As a part of the Siege of Delhi, the Battle of Najafgarh took place between Indian rebels and British Raj soldiers.

Najafgarh become an Assembly constituency in 1993 when the Delhi legislative assembly was re-established.

The constituency includes Baba Haridass Enclave, Dharampura, Dichaon Kalan, Gopal Nagar, Gulia Enclave, Rajeev Vihar, Haibatpura, Jaffarpur Kalan, Jai Vihar, Jharoda Kalan, Prem Nagar, Roshan Garden, Roshan Vihar, Sainik Enclave, Samaspur Khalsa, Saraswati Enclave, Shiv Enclave, Todarmal Colony, Ujwa Village, and Vinoba Enclave.

It is one of the most populous constituencies with an elector base of 2,48,988 comprising 1,17,000 females. The gender ratio of the constituency is 886 -- above the state gender ratio of 824.

Suraj Parshad Paliwal, an independent candidate was elected from the seat in 1993. Next time in 1998, Congressman Kanwal Singh Yadav bagged the seat.

In 2003, another independent candidate, Ranbir Singh Kharb, was elected from the seat. In 2008, Bharat Singh, also an independent MLA bagged the seat.

In 2013, when the AAP and Congress formed a 49-day government, BJP's Ajeet Singh Kharkhari had won. Gahlot bagged the seat in 2015 with 34.62 per cent votes. - IANS