The counting of votes in Madhya Pradesh has concluded. Congress party has emerged the largest party in the state with 114 seats, which is two short of the majority. The BJP, which gave a close fight to the Congress despite anti-incumbency, has won 109 seats. Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party or the BSP has won two seats.
The BJP gave a close fight to the BJP despite a strong anti-incumbency against Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who was looking for a record fourth term. Sensing victory, the Congress has begun contacting leaders of small parties and also independents for mustering a simple majority, party sources said on Tuesday.
Congress leaders have opened backchannel talks with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) and independents who are leading, the sources said.
Kamal Nath, a master strategist, is taking no chances and has opened talks with Mayawati's BSP. Mayawati's party is leading at two places while SP is ahead in two constituencies.
Mayawati, who had snubbed the Congress before the polls and refused to tie-up in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, is believed to have called her winning party lawmakers for a meeting in Delhi.
The election was held in Madhya Pradesh on November 28 and 75% of the state's 5.03 crore voters exercised their franchise, with around 1.64 lakh people having voted on an average in each constituency.
In 2013 polls, BJP had won 165 seats while Congress and BSP got 58 and 4. Three independent MLAs also won the polls.
Exit polls have projected a close contest for both the BJP and Congress. Some exit polls have given an edge to the Congress, while others have predicted a close finish for the grand old party and the ruling BJP.
Here are the HIGHLIGHTS on Madhya Pradesh election results 2018:
The results have yet to be declared in 11 seats in Madhya Pradesh. However at the minute-long press conference Kamal Nath declared that the Congress has already won in the state and they have written to the Governor to form government. They intend to meet Anandiben Patel, the governor soon.
Kamal Nath announced that the Congress has got a clear majority in Madhya Pradesh.
- In Madhya Pradesh, the final jury is still out. We will wait for the last vote to be counted.
- If you see Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, you will see we are fraction of a per cent ahead in popular vote in Madhya Pradesh
- I am quite determined our cadres will introspect on the outcome and the tide will turn the other way
The results are swinging wildly between the two main parties. The Congress, which had surged ahead of the BJP, is now leading by just one seat. The Congress is ahead in 111 seats, one ahead of the BJP.
After a neck-and-neck fight with the BJP, the Congress is inching towards forming a government in Madhya Pradesh.
The BJP's Yashodhara Raje said she was "very hopeful" about a BJP victory in Madhya Pradesh as the leads see-sawed between the party and challenger Congress." Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, she said, was very confident of winning and it would be "remarkable" if the BJP formed government in the state for a fourth time.
BSP chief Mayawati has summoned winning candidates to Delhi, party sources told NDTV. They also said that the Congress is holding backchannel talks with the BSP to discuss the possibility of an alliance in case of a hung assembly.
The Congress will win by a clear margin in Madhya Pradesh, party leader Abhishek Singhvi says. "The right time to talk about actual elections are 10:30 to 11 am. But let me stick my neck out and say we will win decisively in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and there might be some kind of close call in Chhattisgarh which will result in us forming the government," he says.
- As many as 2,899 candidates, including 250 women and five third gender candidates, are contesting for the 200 seats.
- A record 75 per cent voters exercised their franchise on November 28 in the state.
- The Congress is contesting polls in Madhya Pradesh for the first time under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi.
- Exit polls have predicted a neck and neck fight for the BJP and Congress.