India's Delhi headed for fresh elections

Delhi has been without a government since February

India's capital, Delhi, is headed for fresh elections after the main parties said they were unable to form a new government.

Delhi has been without a government since February, when the then chief minister Arvind Kejriwal quit after an anti-corruption bill was blocked.

Since then, the state has been governed by the federal authorities through Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung.

The Supreme Court has said the impasse must be resolved quickly.

Lt-Gov Jung met leaders from all the three major political parties - the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress and the anti-corruption Aam Aadmi Party (Common Man's Party) - to find out whether they could reach an agreement.

"All the above parties expressed their inability to form the government," a statement issued by his office said.

Lt-Gov Jung has recommended to President Pranab Mukherjee that he dissolve the Delhi assembly and pave the way for fresh elections, media reports say.

The BJP is the single largest party in the 70-member state assembly. In the December 2013 election, the party won 31 seats and one seat was won by its ally the Shiromani Akali Dal.

But as the party did not have a majority in the assembly, Mr Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party formed a government with support from the Congress party. The AAP had 28 seats while the Congress had just eight.

Mr Kejriwal quit on 14 February after opposition politicians blocked his bill, which would have created an independent body with the power to investigate politicians and civil servants suspected of corruption.