Arvind Kejriwal, who will take his oath as Delhi's Chief Minister on Saturday, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi this morning. Mr Kejriwal, 46, reportedly invited the PM to his inaugural; however, Mr Modi has earlier engagements in other cities, said sources.

In a tribute to the Aam Aadmi, or Common Man, that his party is named after, Mr Kejriwal has, in a radio spot, invited the public to attend his oath-taking ceremony at Ram Lila Maidan, a large park which can accommodate upto one lakh people.

The VIP invitees to the event are likely to include the seven national law-makers from the BJP, the entire union cabinet, Anna Hazare, who is Mr Kejriwal's estranged mentor, and Kiran Bedi, who ran for Chief Minister as the BJP's candidate in an election that was swept by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Ms Bedi lost her constituency; AAP aggregated a record win, landing 67 of the 70 seats in the Delhi legislature. Ms Bedi derided Mr Kejriwal during the campaign, accusing him of being "toxic" and filled with "negativity"; the Prime Minister had likened him to a Naxal insurgent, and labelled him a "back-stabber" for aborting his last term as Chief Minister after just 49 days in office.

Senior BJP leaders have said that the "negative campaign" may have contributed to the punishing result.   

Mr Kejriwal steered clear of criticism of Ms Bedi, describing her as "a very nice lady" who had been injected into the BJP campaign at the  last minutes as a scapegoat who would be blamed for the looming defeat.

Ms Bedi and Mr Kejriwal were the closest aides to Anna, a Gandhian activist, during the India Against Corruption campaign that swept through India in 2011 and 2012, energizing middle class India, and resulting in the enactment of new laws to combat and punish venality among government officers. Mr Kejriwal was denounced by Anna for deciding to enter politics.