NEW DELHI: VIP raj was conspicuous by its absence on the first day of the new assembly. There were no red beacon cars outside Vidhan Sabha: the new MLAs came in Metro, autos, personal cars and even a battery-operated rickshaw. And no, there were no gun-totting personal security officers sniffing around the campus.

The gates of Vidhan Sabha were open to common man who could enter after security check. Many wore AAP caps with 'mein aam admi hoon' and 'mujhe swaraj chahiye' written on them.

Most AAP MLAs, including minister for law and administrative reforms Somnath Bharti, came in Metro and walked from the station to Vidhan Sabha. They entered after showing Election Commission notification, identifying themselves as MLAs.

While chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, dressed in his trademark casual attire, came in his modest blue Wagon R, smiling amicably at the shutterbugs, minister Rakhi Birla was dropped off in a car by a relative. MLA Dinesh Mohania, who came in Metro, was late for the oath-taking ceremony. Out of the 70 MLAs, 48 were first-timers.

AAP MLA from Rohini, Rajesh Garg, drove into the premises on his e-rickshaw embellished with slogans and brooms. The BJP MLAs, on the lookout for some fault-line in the "aam admis" show of strength, shouted violation of norms indicating that party symbols, like a broom, was not allowed inside Vidhan Sabha. However, the secretariat clarified that there was nothing amiss in the entry of the vehicle which was allotted a pass a day earlier as it was the first-time someone was coming in an e-rickshaw.

Garg, a former Congress worker, had brought to the notice of the lokayukta a case of unauthorized encroachment of land in connivance with the political parties. It was his work and zeal to work against corruption that got him an AAP ticket from Rohini. "I don't have a vehicle of my own. This e-rickshaw was given to me by my supporters when I was campaigning and I use it to go around my area and chose to come with my supporters to Vidhan Sabha in the same vehicle," he said.

Amid all this, the BJP and Congress MLAs, who commonly exhibit a more patronizing demeanour, tried to mix with the crowd of journalists in a desperate attempt to look 'aam'. Gandhi Nagar MLA Arvinder Singh and Ballimaran MLA Haroon Yusuf -both former ministers - left in the same car. Singh, who normally travelled in a chauffeur-driven red beacon car accompanied by a cavalcade, was on the driver's seat. "We like to drive and will now come together for the session. A car pool is a good idea; it will also save fuel," Yusuf said even as his car trailed behind.