Arvind Kejriwal files nomination after 'waiting for over 6 hours'

NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal filed his nomination after waiting for over six hours on Tuesday, the Aam Aadmi Party said.

Kejriwal was 45th in queue to file his nomination from the New Delhi constituency from where he had registered a landslide victory in 2015.

AAP spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj was quoted by PTI as saying Kejriwal filed his nomination at around 6.30 pm.


Earlier in the afternoon Kejriwal waited it out behind a long line of first-timers "without proper nomination papers" prompting AAP leaders to see a "conspiracy" by the BJP to stop the Delhi CM from filing his papers on time.

"Many of them are filing for the first time. They are bound to make mistakes. We also made mistakes the first time. We should hand hold them. I am enjoying waiting with them. They are all part of my family," Kejriwal tweeted in reply to the complaints of his party colleagues.

IANS reported that 30 of those Independent candidates who kept the AAP chief anxiously waiting past the deadline were sacked drivers and conductors of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) who had lost their contract jobs.
According to procedure while nominations were open till 3 pm today, candidates who collected tokens before the stipulated time were allowed to file papers whenever their numbers arrived.

Kejriwal had failed to file his papers on Monday afternoon as earlier scheduled after he was held up in a massive roadshow in his constituency, forcing him to make a dash for it at the 11th hour.

The Delhi CM was accompanied by his family, including parents, and AAP leaders Pankaj Gupta and Gopal Mohan. He faces Sunil Yadav of the BJP and Romesh Sabharwal of the Congress.

The New Delhi Assembly constituency was formed during the 2008 delimitation and elected former Chief Minister late Sheila Dikshit that year, and subsequently the current CM Kejriwal twice, in 2013 and 2015.

Voting will be held in all the 70 Assembly constituencies in Delhi on February 8, and results will be known on the 11th.