He quit Congress to fight the polls on his own

Vijender Khari (27), Independent candidate from Chandni Chowk, decided against employing loudspeakers, colourful pamphlets/handbills or hoardings screaming for voters’ attention.

Vijender Khari (27), Independent candidate from Chandni Chowk, decided against employing loudspeakers, colourful pamphlets/handbills or hoardings screaming for voters’ attention.

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Not because he can’t afford them, but because he believes in the “personal touch”. Khari, a Class X pass who runs a printing press and is financing his own campaign. “A one-to-one meeting is the only way a voter can bond with me and tell me what I can do for him/her,” he said.

Though he acknowledges the strengths of contesting an election for any “big political party”, Khari claims he has had enough.

“I was with the Congress earlier. But I realised that hard-working, honest party workers like me had no future and as they (the party) preferred workers with a rich background,” he said.

“I tell voters that I am there only to work for them, nothing else. If they don’t trust me they should not vote for me,” he said. “They open up to me and tell me their problems,” he said, adding that he is confident that he is striking a rapport with the voters.