HT Archives: Recalling tales from an iconic Capital contest
In 1993, Delhi held its first modern assembly elections, with BJP winning 49 seats, marking a pivotal moment in the city's political evolution.
New Delhi At a time when the Capital is once again transformed into an electoral battlefield, politicians who witnessed the city’s first modern-format assembly elections in 1993 recall how the foundation for today’s political landscape was laid.
To be sure, the 1993 legislative assembly was not the first ever in Delhi. The first democratic elections in the city were held in 1952, shortly after the adoption of the Constitution, which led to Chaudhary Brahm Prakash becoming the first chief minister.
But after the Capital was designated a Union territory (UT) under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, its legislative assembly was abolished. Nearly four decades later, the 69th Amendment to the Constitution restored an elected assembly in Delhi, and in 1993, the city went to the polls again.
The elections, held on November 6, 1993, saw the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerge victorious with 49 of the 70 assembly seats. The Congress secured 14, while the Janata Dal won four, and three seats went to independents.
BJP’s Madan Lal Khurana became the city’s first chief minister under the new system.
Leaders that were part of the 1993 campaign recall the rhetoric, which primarily revolved around infrastructure.
“The major election topic was development and infrastructure. Everyone would promise ‘hum jitenge toh yeh bridge bana denge (if we win, we will make this bridge)’,” said veteran Congress politician Chattar Singh.
With assembly elections returning after such a long gap, enthusiasm was high, but the campaign looked very different from today.
“The excitement among parties was very high. There was door-to-door campaigning and public rallies. But there was no social media. Each party would get slots on Doordarshan where they could advertise and participate in talks. The print media played a very important part back then. People followed election trends closely in newspapers,” Singh said.
On polling day, the turnout started slow, but as reported by HT on November 7, 1993, participation surged as the day progressed, reaching 61.6%.
The article said: “The day started on a dull note with very few people turning out to vote. The initial impression was that it would be a low-key affair… However, these impressions were belied as the day wore on.”
Delhi in the early 1990s was a rapidly growing metropolis of 9.42 million people. It was a burgeoning city continuously drawing people from all parts of the country. Today, the projected population is 21 million, according to the last 2011 census, when it was 16.8 million, and the electorate 15.6 million.
Traffic congestion was a pressing issue even then. The city had 2 million registered vehicles – more than the combined vehicles in the other three metropolitan cities of Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. (Today the city has 7.9 million registered vehicles).Delhi was already clamouring for a rail-based transport system at the time, though it would take another nine years for the Delhi Metro to become a reality.
Already emerging on the peripheries were dozens of unauthorised colonies due to migration and a shortage of formal housing.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was in a state of suspension, run by a Centre-appointed bureaucrat instead of elected councillors.
Then came December 14, 1993 — the first day of Delhi’s new legislative assembly. The city, eager to witness its government in action, soon realised the challenges of its unique status. Under the 69th Amendment, Delhi became the “National Capital Territory” — not quite a full-fledged state, but no longer just any other UT.
SK Sharma, who played a key role in organising the first session and later became special secretary in 1994, recalls the learning curve for legislators. Despite the chaos, he remembered it as a wonderful time.
“Everyone was passionate. They needed this unique system to work. The LG had asked me to train everyone in the House proceedings as to how to act, what are the rules for speaking etc,” Sharma, who is now 75, said.
“Some of the members, like Mukesh Sharma, Ajay Maken, Jag Pravesh Chandra started coming to my room almost daily to discuss various aspects of proceedings, like how to raise issues and protocols. It was a challenging time for me too, because I also did not have the slightest idea of what I was doing. They eventually started calling me ‘dada’ (elder brother) and would say ‘dada sikhao (dada, teach)’,” Sharma laughed.
One striking aspect of the time, he recalled, was how schoolchildren were allowed to observe proceedings.
“Eighty to a hundred students would fill the gallery to watch democracy in action. The MLAs were also meticulous, as they started taking interest in the proceedings, they would study and prepare notes before coming. It was a completely different era!”
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