Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal, who has promised to give a corruption-free government if voted to power, was among the early bird to cast his ballot in the Delhi assembly election.
Forty-five-year-old Kejriwal, who is contesting against three-time Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Bharatiya Janata Party's Vijender Gupta, reached polling booth number 47 at Nagar Pallika Primary School at Hanuman Road in New Delhi Assembly constituency around 8.15 am.
"People of Delhi will win and corruption will be defeated in the election," he said after exercising his franchise. He asked the voter of Delhi to come out in large numbers and cast their ballot.
AAP alleged that the Delhi police and presiding officers at various polling booths in New Delhi and the Adarsh Nagar assembly constituencies were not allowing their party's polling agents to put their tables.
"We are being denied permission to put our polling agents at various booths in New Delhi and also in Adarsh Nagar assembly constituencies by the presiding officers. It seems that this is being done delebrately as returning officers are also not helping us," AAP leader and senior lawyer Prashant
Bhushan said.
Prior to Kejriwal, Delhi's Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Dev exercised his franchise at the same venue. He arrived at the polling booth around 8.05 am, accompanied by his wife and cast his vote.
"I am confident that people of Delhi will create a new record of polling. There has been huge enthusiasm among the people about the election," he said, adding, "My message to all the citizen is that come out and vote and prove that Delhi is not lagging behind any state."
Dev expressed the hope that the youth would come out in record numbers to cast their vote and "will be able to dispel the image of urban apathy."
