The New Delhi assembly constituency in the national capital will be one of the high-stakes seats during the upcoming assembly polls witnessing a contest between two veterans. While former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal will be trying to hold the bastion, Congress has fielded senior leader Sandeep Dikshit from this seat.
He said New Delhi is not a new area for him adding that the constituency had been his political arena.
The former MP from East Delhi said the Congress high command believed that he was attached to the New Delhi seat, so it would be better to fight from there, he said while speaking to The Print.
"I have been connected to New Delhi. When my mother fought the polls from the seat, we did a lot of work including preparation and connecting with people," Dikshit said.
He also said that the other reason why the party fielded him from the New Delhi seat is that he has been vocal and critical of the work and policies of Kejriwal. "In such a situation, the party might have felt that his candidature against Arvind Kejriwal could give an advantage to Congress," he said.
On being asked if he has a personal rivalry with Kejriwal, Dikshit said: "There is no difference between personal and politics, be it personal life or political life, there is no difference in your thinking, character and behaviour, it remains the same throughout your life."
On Kejriwal defeating his late mother and former Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit, he said, "Yes, it is true that he defeated my mother in the election. The person who is defeated is always remembered. But if you are saying that I hate him or have a personal grudge, then it is not so."
However, he alleged that Kejriwal "tried to defame my mother, if this a strategy then its in a very poor light."