India polls: Kejriwal casts ballot, says people voting against 'dictatorship'

ARVIND KEJRIWAL, the chief minister of Delhi and leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday (25) cast ballot along with his family members, including wife Sunita Kejriwal, in the sixth phase of the national election in New Delhi. Elections were being held in 58 seats across eight Indian states and Union Territories during the day.

The opposition leader, who is on an interim bail related to an alleged excise policy scam of his government till June 2, said people were voting in large numbers against "dictatorship, price rise and unemployment".

Apart from his wife, Kejriwal was also accompanied by his two children and father Govind Ram Kejriwal as they cast their votes at the polling booth in the Civil Lines area in the Chandni Chowk parliamentary constituency from where the Indian National Congress's JP Agarwal is contesting as the candidate of the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Praveen Khandelwal.

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The AAP and Congress have made an alliance in Delhi where the former is contesting in four and latter in three seats. The BJP won all seven seats in the national capital in the 2014 and 2019 elections.

The AAP is contesting in East Delhi, West Delhi, South Delhi and New Delhi constituencies, while the Congress has fielded candidates in North East, North West and Chandni chowk seats.

Read: Delhi voters urged to shatter 'urban apathy'

Kejriwal said his elderly mother could not join them due to health reasons.

"I voted against dictatorship, inflation and unemployment," he said.

Talking to reporters after casting his vote, the Delhi chief minister appealed to people not to sit at their homes due to the intense summer heat and come out to vote against "dictatorship".

"I understand, people in large numbers are voting against dictatorship, inflation and unemployment because they are highly troubled," he said.

Govind Ram Kejriwal told PTI Video after casting his vote, "I appeal to the Almighty to keep us safe so that we keep praying to Him."

Senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi also cast their votes in the New Delhi constituency from where AAP's Somnath Bharti is pitted against the BJP's Bansuri Swaraj.

(With PTI inputs)