Delhi Election 2025: CM Atishi launches crowdfunding campaign, releases online link for donation

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi launched a crowdfunding campaign to contest the assembly election. Speaking in a press conference on Sunday, Atishi released an online link for people to donate money. She said she needed ₹40 lakh to fight the elections.

Atishi is contesting the Delhi Assembly Election as an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate from Kalkaji. She launched a crowdfunding campaign on Sunday to contest the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls and said she hoped that people would support her party's politics of work and honesty.

“The AAP has always fought elections with the help of small donations from the common man which has helped it pursue the politics of work and honesty,” she said.

Atishi was asked about the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) claim that the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has projected a loss of ₹2,026 crore due to the Delhi government's now-scrapped excise policy.

She responded, “Despite being in power in Delhi for 10 years, the AAP does not have even a rupee of corruption. We will contest the polls with the support of the people of Delhi and the country, as has been done in the previous elections.”

Targeting the BJP, Atishi said, “Perhaps they have collected enough money from their friends and through government contracts and they do not need to collect funds for contesting elections.”

Atishi, who is seeking re-election from Kalkaji assembly seat, is pitted against former MP and BJP candidate Ramesh Bidhuri.

In December, senior AAP leader and party candidate from Jangpura Manish Sisodia launched a crowdfunding platform and sought financial support from people for his poll campaign.

The 70-member Delhi Assembly goes to polls on February 5 and the results will be announced on February 8. The last date for filing nominations is January 17. The date for scrutiny of nominations is January 18. The last date for withdrawal of candidature is January 20.

The Congress, which was in power for 15 consecutive years in Delhi, suffered setbacks in the last two assembly elections and has failed to win any seat. In contrast, the AAP dominated the 2020 assembly elections by winning 62 out of 70 seats while the BJP got only eight seats.

(With inputs from agency)