BJP would have lost Delhi polls had AAP and Cong joined hands: Sanjay Raut

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Saturday said a Congress-AAP alliance would have crushed the BJP in Delhi assembly polls, as counting trends show the Arvind Kejriwal-led party losing many seats amid the saffron surge.

Reiterating his allegations of irregularities in the voters list in Maharashtra which saw the Mahayuti combine winning big last November, Raut alleged a "Maharashtra pattern" was implemented in Delhi polls.

"It would have been better had the ties between the AAP and the Congress been good. Both parties fought against the BJP separately. Had they contested jointly, the BJP's defeat would have been certain. We should take lessons from this," Raut told reporters.

Raut claimed 39 lakh votes were added in Maharashtra during the assembly polls.

"These votes will not go to Bihar while some moved to Delhi. A Maharashtra pattern has been implemented in Delhi as well. The EC has shut its eyes," the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader alleged.

The saffron party is poised to form a government in Delhi after 26 years, with the latest Election Commission (EC) trends showing the BJP ahead in a further 43 of Delhi's 70 seats and AAP in 16.

Former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia has conceded defeat to the BJP's Tarvinder Singh Marwah in Jangpura while the saffron party's Parvesh Verma claimed to have defeated AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal in the high-profile New Delhi seat.

Raut claimed the Aam Aadmi Party was not allowed to work in Delhi while the LG (Lieutenant General) wielded full power.

"All important leaders were jailed, which is one of the factors for the defeat (of AAP). This is the Maharashtra pattern to finish leadership that stands up to the BJP," he alleged.