45 per cent cast votes in Delhi

NEW DELHI: Polling in the Delhi Assembly elections picked up by noon with an estimated 45 per cent of the 1.05 crore voters exercising their franchise during the first six-and-a-half hours of polling, which was peaceful.
    
A minor scuffle was reported in a polling booth in Wazirpur between a polling agent and an election officer, which was contained by police before it escalated.
    
"Around 45 per cent of the voters have cast their votes till 2.30 p.m. The polling has so far been peaceful and there were no reports of any untoward incident," officials at the Delhi Chief Electoral Office said.
    
Initial reports suggested that polling in constituencies like Matiala, Najafgarh and Ghonda were brisk.
    
Among the early voters were Vice President Hamid Ansari, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, AICC General Secretary Rahul Gandhi and BJP's chief ministerial candidate V K Malhotra.
    
Belaying apprehensions that Mumbai terror attacks will cast a shadow on the polling, people were coming out enthusiastically, especially in North-West, South-West and Outer districts.
    
There were reports of malfunctioning of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in some parts of the city but they were rectified, election officials said.
    
In Narela and Bawana, some voters complained that their names have been struck out from the electoral rolls and they could not vote.
    
Polling was smooth in Jamia Nagar, which was in news after Batla House encounter in which two suspected terrorists were killed.
    
Elaborate security arrangements were made in the capital with the deployment of about 52,000 police personnel who kept a tight vigil.