Her photos may be missing from the Congress's campaign paraphernalia but late Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit virtually received an ovation from Telangana chief minister Revanth Reddy on Thursday.

Reddy was at the Delhi state Congress office to launch the party’s poll “guarantees” of subsidised cooking gas and 300 units of electricity per household.

“When Sheila Dikshit was Delhi CM for 15 years, we saw progress like the Metro, CNG buses, roads and flyovers. Whatever development in Delhi happened took place when she was CM,” Reddy told reporters.

“After that, Kejriwal and Modi have become CM and PM thrice each. You can see the plight of Delhi. People from Telangana dread to come here because you can’t breathe (clean air).”

Reddy added: “Compare Modiji, Kejriwal and Sheila Dikshit. What all was implemented in the 15 years when the Congress was in power in Delhi! The biggest Metro rail is in Delhi. Who made it? What Sheila Dikshit made is a model for the country.”

Dikshit’s absence from the Delhi Assembly poll campaign, despite her son Sandeep contesting from her old constituency of New Delhi, has been conspicuous.

Asked earlier this month about her omission, Congress Delhi chief Devender Yadav told reporters: “Sheilaji resides in every heart in Delhi. We are proud that Delhi was nurtured under her able leadership for 15 years, and it is our responsibility to look to the future.”

Reddy on Thursday cited Sonia Gandhi’s promise to create a Telangana state that led to the Congress being wiped out from Andhra Pradesh. The party lost power at the Centre as well.

“The promises of the Congress are written in gold. We are not here just to fight elections,” Reddy said.

In line with what it has implemented in other states where it has won power, the Congress has also promised ₹2,500 a month for women, a health insurance cover of ₹25 lakh for all, and a ₹8,500 monthly stipend for a year to educated but unemployed youths towards skill development.

Besides Reddy, former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot and Karnataka deputy chief minister D.K. Shivakumar have come here to announce these schemes to emphasise the message that they have implemented all this in their states.

The Congress has not won a single Assembly seat in Delhi for a decade. Delhi votes on February 5.