Delhi elections: Kiran Bedi, Kejriwal, Maken to file nominations shortly

The BJP's chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal will file their nomination papers for the February 7 Delhi assembly elections on Wednesday.

The BJP's chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal will file their nomination papers for the February 7 Delhi assembly elections on Wednesday.

Aam-Aadmi-Party-AAP-convenor-Arvind-Kejriwal-and-BJP-chief-ministerial-candidate-Kiran-Bedi-had-once-fought-together-against-corruption-as-part-of-Team-Anna

Bedi began a roadshow from Lajpat Rai Chowk in Krishna Nagar, the east Delhi constituency, which is seen as a BJP stronghold. Union minister Harsh Vardhan had successfully contested the last assembly elections from Krishna Nagar seat.

She will have to reach the election office before 3pm to file her papers.

"On my way to file my Nomination in Krishna Nagar Constituency. To Serve the City which stole my heart as a 14 yrs old junior tennis player!" she tweeted before her roadshow.

Aam Aadmi Party's Kejriwal had on Tuesday set out with much fanfare to file his nomination papers but had to put it off till Wednesday after his road show made it impossible for him to reach the election office in time.

Both Bedi and Kejriwal are vying for the post of Delhi chief minister. Kejriwal had on Tuesday dared Bedi to a public debate to which the BJP CM nominee had replied saying she will "debate him on the floor of the House."

And later in the evening, Kejriwal held a public rally close to the BJP office in Krishna Nagar and attacked the saffron party. His rally came soon after Bedi, his former associate in social activist Anna Hazare's anti-corruption campaign, had addressed party workers there.

Bedi, India's first woman Indian Police Service officer, was named the BJP's chief ministerial candidate by party president Amit Shah after a meeting of BJP parliamentary board on Monday.

The BJP has fielded Nupur Sharma, a London School of Economics graduate and a former student leader, against Kejriwal, in what is being seen as handing the AAP chief a cakewalk.

Wednesday is also the last day to file nomination papers for the elections. It will be a hectic day for electoral officials as several senior leaders, including Congress' Ajay Maken, will file their nomination papers.

Scrutiny of nominations papers would be done on January 22 while the last date for withdrawal of candidatures is January 24. The election results would be declared on February 10.

(With PTI inputs)