New Delhi:
Millions voted in Delhi on Wednesday in polls seen as a barometer of how Indians will vote in the general election just months away. A record turnout of over 63 per cent was seen by debutant Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party as a positive sign as they hoped to upstage three-time chief minister Sheila Dikshit and BJP's doctor-politician Harsh Vardhan.
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The Election Commission said the turnout was 63 per cent at 4:45 pm - the highest the capital has ever seen - and was expected to go up.
The turnout was over 70 per cent in the New Delhi constituency where both Sheila Dikshit and Arvind Kejriwal are candidates. (Live updates)
"I am very confident of the results. It will not be my victory but that of the people," said Mr Kejriwal, one of the early bird voters. (Read) As he left for a spell of 'Vipassana' or meditation, his party said this evening that the high turnout was a sign that voters want change.
The former tax official and his nine-month-old Aam Aadmi Party are confident of outdoing the Congress and BJP with their promise of a corruption-free government to jaded voters. (Delhi polls: Heavyweights)
At 75, Sheila Dikshit is fighting for a record fourth term against the strongest anti-incumbency sentiment her party has faced in years. "I am too grown-up to be nervous. I will keep my fingers crossed," she said.
The BJP's Chief Ministerial candidate Harsh Vardhan, an E.N.T surgeon and former Health Minister, hopes to reestablish his party in the saddle after 15 long years. "We are far ahead of the others," he avowed.
The BJP's campaign highlighted inflation, rising crimes against women and shortage of power and water supply in the city of 17 million. (Assembly polls: Full coverage)
The verdict on Sunday of elections in Delhi and four other states - Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram - will be seen as an indicator of the possible outcome of the national elections, due by May.
The assembly elections are also being viewed by many as a popularity test for BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and Congress' leading face Rahul Gandhi.
For the first time in this election, voters had the option of choosing the "None of The Above" or NOTA button, if no candidate is acceptable to them.
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