Counting of votes polled in the high-stakes began at 8 a.m. amid tight security at various centres, with exit polls predicting a big win for the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The curiosity among people to know the outcome of the elections to the 70-member Delhi Assembly has heightened post-exit polls and the delay in announcement of the final voter turnout by authorities.

Here are the updates:

At 9.45 am, Arvind Kejiriwal, leading by 2026 over BJP's Sunil Kumar Yadav in New Delhi constituency.

Celebrations at the AAP headquarters

Celebrations start at the AAP headquarters in New Delhi on February 11, 2020   | Photo Credit: R V Moorthy

Even before the first round of counting commenced, Delhi Congress chief spokesperson Mukesh Sharma, who contested from Vikaspuri, conceded defeat. He tweeted: “While conceding my defeat, I would like to thank all the voters and Congress party workers in Vikaspuri and hope for the all round development of the constituency. I will keep fighting for the all round development of the Vikaspuri and Uttam Nagar Assembly constituencies in future as well.”

Constituencies to watch out for

Counting in progress at Siri Fort in New Delhi on February 11, 2020   | Photo Credit: V V Krishnan

Delhi CM and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal is contesting against Sunil Kumar Yadav of the BJP and Congress’ Romesh Sabharwal. Yadav, a lawyer and chief of the Delhi BJP youth wing, has appealed to people to vote for someone who will be ‘accessible’. Sabharwal, a first-timer, was the State NSUI president in 1987-88 and has been an executive member of the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee since 2004.

Tight security in place

The election, largely seen as a battle between the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP, which went aggressive during the high-octane campaign, was held on February 8, sealing the fate of 672 candidates -- 593 men and 79 women.

Strong rooms spread across the city storing the EVMs are being heavily guarded, with a “three-layer security ring”, said Delhi CEO Ranbir Singh.

Security personnel stand guard outside a strong room, a day after the national capital went to the polls for the Assembly election, at a counting centre in Akshardham, New Delhi on February 9, 2020.   | Photo Credit: PTI

“We are all geared up for the counting tomorrow and elaborate security arrangements have been put in place. The exercise will be carried out as per the laid-down procedures of the Election Commission,” he said.

33 counting observers; 'foolproof and non-tamperable' EVMs

Each EVM consists of a ballot unit (BU), a controls units (CU) and a voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT.)

From every Assembly constituency, five VVPATs will be randomly selected and they will be counted, he said.

The counting centres are located across the 11 districts, including at CWG Sports Complex in East Delhi, NSIT Dwarka in West Delhi, Meerabai Institute of Technology and GB Pant Institute of Technology in Southeast Delhi, Sir CV Raman ITI, Dheerpur in Central Delhi, and Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Bawana in North Delhi.

There will be 33 counting observers, officials said.

There were 13,780 polling booths where every vote was accounted for by the presiding officers which is a time-consuming exercise, Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Sandeep Saxena said at a press conference on Sunday.

Critical and vulnerable polling locations, numbered 545 and spanned 3,843 booths.

In view of the ongoing anti-CAA protest in Shaheen Bagh, the Delhi CEO’s Office had put all five polling stations in the area under the “critical” category.

Security personnel kept guard at strong rooms storing electronic voting machines (EVMs).

The Delhi Chief Electoral Officer, a day ahead of the polls, had said all EVMs were tested and they were “foolproof and non-tamperable”.

Congress rejects exit poll results

A day after voting in Delhi Assembly elections, the Congress on Sunday rejected the exit poll results, most of which predicted little or no change in the party’s fortunes from 2015. The party the result, to be declared on February 11, would “surprise everyone”.

BJP refrains from making arrangements for celebrations

On the eve of Delhi Assembly election results here on Monday, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), exuded confidence of its victory though sought to maintain restraint when it came to preparations for celebrations amid exit poll results predicting a sweep by the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Speaking on condition of anonymity, Delhi BJP leaders said that no special arrangements were made in advance for celebrations if the party wins the elections.

BJP likely to gain over 2015 tally

Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP sought to retain power on development plank, against the BJP that ran an aggressive campaign centred around the issues of anti-CAA protests and nationalism.

Most exit polls also predicted that the Congress is unlikely to open its account even this time in Delhi, which it ruled from 1998 to 2013.

Looking to capture power after 22 years, the BJP had mounted one of the most aggressive campaigns in the Delhi Assembly polls, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah leading the saffron charge on its planks of Hindutva and nationalism, and its strident opposition to Shaheen Bagh protests.

The issue often dominated the political discourse during the campaign, with many BJP leaders targeting the AAP, and the Congress, accusing them of “misleading people” holding anti-CAA protests in Delhi.

A section of voters on February 8 claimed that the prolonged street agitation demanding revocation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) was “not an issue in the beginning of the campaign” but “political parties had slowly turned it into one”.

Ballimaran constituency recorded the highest voter turnout of 71.6% among all the 70 Assembly seats in the national capital, while Delhi Cantonment brought up the rear in polling percentage, according to data shared by officials on February 9.

Okhla constituency recorded 58.84%. Shaheen Bagh and Jamia Nagar fall in Okhla Assembly constituency, where hectic polling had taken place till late afternoon.

Shaheen Bagh has been the epicentre of anti-CAA protests in Delhi, running into over 50 days now.

Over 1.47 crore people were eligible to vote in the Delhi polls, including 2,32,815 in the age group of 18-19.

The turnout in the 2015 Assembly polls stood at 67.47%. The AAP had routed rival parties bagging 67 seats and the BJP was reduced to mere three seats, while the Congress had drawn a blank.

Exit polls predict big win for AAP

The ruling Aam Admi Party (AAP) is all set to return to power for another term with a big win, based on the projections of all major exit polls.

The counting of votes will take place on February 11.

A poll of polls done by NDTV showed AAP winning 56 of the 70 seats, a drop from its tally of 67 seats in 2015, while the BJP was projected to win 14 seats, a jump from the three seats won by the party in the last Assembly election.

AAP questions EC delay in releasing turnout figures

The Aam Aadmi Party on Sunday hit out at the Election Commission for not announcing the final polling percentage even 24 hours after the polling was over. The Chief Electoral Officer announced the figure at a press conference at 7 p.m.

The Chief Elector Officer said the total turnout took long to collect and calculate and hence took time to be shared.

(With inputs from Agencies)