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BJP And AAP Accuse Each Other Of Violating Rules During Delhi Polls

BJP And AAP Accuse Each Other Of Violating Rules During Delhi Polls
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NEW DELHI: Allegations flew thick and fast between the BJP and AAP on Saturday, with both parties accusing each other of violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).

The AAP filed a complaint against BJP's chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi with the Election Commission over an alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct in her constituency, Krishna Nagar, reported PTI.

In its letter to the poll watchdog, AAP accused Bedi of holding a road show and a bike rally this morning with hundreds of workers carrying "campaign material" and "talking to voters".

Campaigning for the Delhi polls had closed officially on Feb. 5 at 6 pm.

"Kiran Bedi from Krishna Nagar constituency doing 'padyatra'- bike rally with hundreds of workers and met with voters. Hundreds of workers with campaign material. She did 5 KM padyatra and bike rally," the letter said.

The party alleged that the rally was held inside the main Krishna Nagar area and urged EC to take action against Bedi.

The complaint by the party came even as AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal sought EC's intervention over polling being "slowed down" in many places, which he said had resulted in voters returning without casting their vote.

"As per rules, 3 voters are allowed inside booth at a time. They are allowing only 1 voter, which has slowed down voting... Even lunch breaks being taken which is against rules. EC should immediately intervene," he tweeted.

Meanwhile, BJP, taking serious note of reports that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) workers were intimidating voters in the Krishna Nagar Assembly constituency, alleged that the Arvind Kejriwal-led party is violating the MCC.

"This is the tactics that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is using. On the one hand, the Aam Aadmi Party says they have spies, they have cameras to look into all this, and on the other, they are the ones who are breaking all rules," BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said here.

He also said the people of Delhi will teach the AAP a lesson for violating the MCC.

"They are the ones who are breaking the Model Code of Conduct. They are the ones who are breaking all the moralities in the election.... Today, when they are caught red-handed, they are trying to allege other political parties. But the people of Delhi will give them a befitting reply," he added.

BJP's chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi earlier in the day shared a video with the media showing a lady accusing Aam Aadmi Party of intimidating her to not vote for her party.

Kejriwal, meanwhile, had urged people to not vote for the parties who have "distributed alcohol and money".

He had also taken a dig at BJP President Amit Shah's recent statement that the Prime Minister's promise to deposit Rs 15 lakh in bank account of every family after recovering black money stashed away abroad was just an "electoral gimmick (jumla)".

"Don't vote for parties who treat their poll promises as electoral gimmicks. Vote for those who are into honest politics and will eradicate corruption," he had said.

The polling in the single-phased legislative assembly elections in Delhi has crossed the 35 percent mark till 1 pm.

Polling for the 70-member Delhi assembly began at 8 a.m. amid tight security. According to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer of Delhi, all arrangements are in place to ensure free and fair polling.

About 55,000 police personnel have been deployed to ensure hassle free voting. The police will also undertake patrolling in different parts of the capital to prevent the distribution of liquor, money or any other allurements.

Over 13 million electorate will decide the fate of 673 candidates.

The polling is presently on at 12,177 polling stations. Of these, 714 have been declared as critical and 191 as highly critical. Voting will continue till 6 p.m. in the evening.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.