India, Feb. 8 -- The counting of around 9.5 million votes polled across 13,766 polling booths in the Delhi assembly elections on February 5 began 8am on Saturday with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) taking an early lead. The BJP was ahead on 40 of the 70 seats and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) 28 at 9am. Most exit polls showed the BJP was set to return to power after 27 years.

The votes were being counted at 19 counting centres under security arrangements. Only authorised personnel were allowed inside the centres where the use of mobile phones has been prohibited.

The Delhi polls were the first major electoral exercise in 2025. It was the most closely fought election in the Capital with national implications. Delhi has had an outsized impo...