Panaji, May 5 (IANS): A court here on Saturday directed the North Goa district police to start a preliminary probe into a complaint against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who allegedly exhorted voters to accept money in return for votes from rival candidates during election campaign speeches in January last year.

Mapusa Judicial Magistrate, First Class, Shantishri Sinai Kudchadkar directed police to start an initial probe and handed over documents related to the case, which includes a complaint filed by Deputy Collector Gurudas Dessai, who was then a returning officer during the February 2017 assembly polls, against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader.

The complaint was filed at the Mapusa police station after the Delhi Chief Minister's alleged comments made at three poll-campaign meetings in January last year.

The Court has also handed over CD containing the video of the alleged controversial speech to the in-charge of the Mapusa police station.

After more than a year of the complaint being filed as non-cognizable, Dessai, in a fresh application filed before the court in December last year, had requested that the complaint be filed as an FIR under cognizable sections 171 B (inducement) and 171 E (bribery) of the Indian Penal Code.