Delhi elections 2015: In Janakpuri, Jagdish Mukhi to contest against son-in-law

NEW DELHI: He stood by his father-in-law, Jagdish Mukhi, who is the BJP candidate from Janakpuri, during most of his election campaigns in the past. But this time, Suresh Kumar has decided to take on Mukhi from a rival camp.

Congress' decision to field Suresh from the constituency will make the contest exciting. While some residents say Mukhi will bag the seat once again as he has represented the area since 1979, others say it is time for a change. But Mukhi and Suresh don't consider each other a challenge.

"I don't think BJP is in race this time. People want the young generation to take over and look at the area's development from a fresh perspective," said Suresh. Confident of his victory, Mukhi said, "Why should I bother about who will come on number two position?"

The two share a cordial relationship and have decided not to make any personal attack on each other. "I'm not fighting against Mukhi-ji. I'm fighting against a political party. BJP has not done a good job in the area and I will tell people about my plans for the constituency,'' said Suresh.

Mukhi too cites examples of other political families like the Gandhis and Scindias where members have different political affiliations. "My work is separate from my personal life. You should not look at him as my son-in-law. I'm not contesting against him. For me, the Congress is my opponent and he happens to be their candidate," Mukhi.

While Mukhi is focusing on the development work done by him, Suresh is busy highlighting lack of development in the area. "There are areas in the constituency which have been ignored completely for years. These areas don't have basic amenities. People have seen what BJP has done for them over the past three decades. I have a new plan for the constituency,'' said Suresh, who had joined Congress in 2012 after he was denied ticket by BJP during municipal elections.

But Mukhi said, "I have done a lot of work in the area. Apart from my work, people will vote for a stable government. It is only BJP which can provide a stable government."

In its election campaign, Congress will highlight the infighting in BJP. Area councillor Ashish Sood, who was also seeking a ticket from the constituency, and Mukhi don't get along. Suresh said it was the people who suffered due to infighting in the party. "MLA doesn't let councillor work and vice versa. In their fight, why should people suffer?" said Suresh.

In this family battle, AAP candidate Rajesh Rishi and Congress rebel Sanjey Puri, who is contesting as an Independent, are hopeful of making major gains. In the last assembly elections, Rishi lost the seat to Mukhi by 2,644 votes.