State Assembly Election Results: BSP To Support Congress In Madhya Pradesh

Bahujan Samajwadi Party Chief Mayawati said her party will extend support to the Congress to form the government in Madhya Pradesh and, if required, in Rajasthan too.

The Bharatiya Janata Party is making efforts to return to power in Madhya Pradesh despite the Congress emerging as the single largest party with 114 seats, said Maywati.

"We fought elections to keep the BJP out of power...We do not agree with the philosophy of the Congress. But to keep the BJP out of power, we will extend it our support," she said in a statement.

The BSP president claimed that the electorate of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan was upset with the policies of the BJP governments at the Centre and in the three states and wanted to keep it out of power.

"That is why people preferred the Congress as a strong alternative. They voted for it with a heavy heart... had it (Congress) followed BR Ambedkar and worked for the development of Dalits, tribals, and minorities, then there was no need to form this (BSP) party," she said.

(Source: PTI)

Counting of votes has concluded in Madhya Pradesh with the BJP winning 109 seats, the Bahujan Samaj Party winning two seats and the Congress leading with 114 seats. This, however, is below the 115-half-way mark required in the state to form a government independently.

Madhya Pradesh is still undecided with the Congress leading in 113 seats and the BJP leading in 109. Of these seats 83 have been confirmed as BJP wins while 85 have been confirmed as Congress victories.

The Congress has sough an appointment with governor to form the governemnt. However, BJP has said that it should wait till the last vote is counted. The Governor House has said it won't give an appointment till clarity from the Election Commission.

In Rajasthan, counting has been completed and the Congress has been declared winner with 99 out of the 199 seats, one short of majority. BJP managed to win 73 seats.

Telangana saw TRS do a complete sweep, winning 88 out of 119 seats. The alliance between Congress and TDP secured 21 seats.

In Chhattisgarh too the counting is underway. Congress has won 49 seats and is leading in 19 seats. BJP has won 10 seats and is leading in 5.

Mizoram was a straightforward contest. The MNF came back to power after 10 years with a majority 26 out of 40 seats. The Congress won 5.

The Congress Party has sought an appointment with the governor of Madhya Pradesh to stake claim to the government.

The Congress Party is on track to form the next government in Rajasthan. The party is leading in 99 seats, while the BJP is ahead in 73 constituencies.

• There are 8 constituencies in Rajasthan where leading candidates are ahead by less than 1,000 votes.
• BJP's Dharmendra Kumar and Jabbar Singh, and Congress' Virendra Singh are ahead by less than 300 votes.

As of 9 p.m., the Congress led in 114 seats in Madhya Pradesh’s 230-seat assembly, with the Bharatiya Janata Party six seats behind at 109. Counting has been slower than usual, so as you keep an eye on the headline number, there are 16 constituencies where leading candidates were ahead by less than 500 votes. Eight of these are from the BJP.

Catch all live trends for Madhya Pradesh here.

Congress' resurgence is a victory of the party's workers, farmers, youth and small business owners, said Congress President Rahul Gandhi.

Here are the key highlights from what Gandhi had to say:

• BSP & SP's ideologies are similar to that of the Congress'. Their thinking differs from that of the BJP.
• Don't expect any trouble with the selection of chief ministers in the states that Congress has won.
• The central issue with EVMs is that the chips can be manipulated. This is a question that has been answered in the U.S.

The solution for farmers distress will be challenging, but the Congress Party will find the answer by working with farmers, said Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi added that he'd learned a lot from the 2014 elections defeat and from Prime Minister Modi.

Watch Rahul Gandhi’s press conference here:

The battle for Madhya Pradesh is going down to the wire. Both the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress Party are hovering around the 110-seat mark. The halfway mark in the 230-seat assembly in 115.

BJP’s incumbent Chief Minister Shivraj Singh is cruising to victory in his stronghold of Budhni.

Catch all live trends for Madhya Pradesh here.

Outgoing Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh has tendered his resignation after the Congress swept the state for the first time since its formation.

The alliance between the two helped the Congress in conquering Chhattisgarh, which had remained a Bharatiya Janata Party stronghold since the state’s formation in 2001. Janta Congress Chhattisgarh and the Bahujan Samaj Party collectively won 10.9 percent of the total votes. That is largely the difference between the vote shares of the Congress and the BJP.

Trends show that in earlier election, the vote share difference between the two national parties had never been so wide. In 2008 and 2013 state elections, BJP’s vote share in Chhattisgarh was merely 1 percent higher than that of the Congress.

Read more here.

Madhya Pradesh

The race to power in Madhya Pradesh is set for a photo finish with both BJP and Congress going neck and neck. The Congress is leading in 115 seats, just two short of the halfway mark.

Rajasthan

The contest seems to be a little less intense in Rajasthan where the Congress looks likely to grab power. It is leading in 104 seats, just over the halfway mark. The focus may now shift on who will be the chief minister.

Chhattisgarh

In Chhatisgarh, the Congress has a comfortable victory with the party leading in 68 out of a possible 90 seats. The Ajit Jogi-Mayawati alliance failed to make a dent in Congress' chances.

• BJP: 12
• Congress: 68
• BSP: 4
• Others: 6

Telangana

The TRS managed a clean sweep on Telangana, even improving its tally from the 2014 polls. KCR’s early election move has paid off.

• TRS: 86
• Congress+: 20
• BJP: 2
• Others: 11

Mizoram

Mizoram will see a shift in government as the people have voted out the Congress. The Mizo National Front are leading in 26 out of the possible 40 seats.

• Congress: 5
• Mizo National Front: 26
• BJP: 1
• Others: 8

Congress' CP Joshi is leading in Nathdwara by 10,439 votes.

The Congress has managed to put some space between itself and the BJP in Rajasthan now, with a lead in 100 seats. The BJP is leading in 74 seats while the BSP is leading in only 4 seats.

Congress' Ashok Gehlot, sitting candidate and a four-time MLA from Sardarpura is leading his rival Shambu Singh Khetasar by a 24,725-vote margin. Sardarpura is the only seat BJP has lost in the Jodhpur district.

BJP has fielded four different candidates against Gehlot since 1998, but in vain.

Current Chief Minister and Two-time MLA Raman Singh is leading in his naxal-affected constituency - Rajnandgao with a 1,375-vote margin. He is fighting against former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's niece Karuna Shukla who joined the Congress in 2014 after being sidelined by the BJP.

On the other hand, Bhupesh Baghel who has been touted to be Congress' chief minister candidate is leading in Patan by a 4,369-margin. He has won this seat four times to become an MLA.

Congress is leading in 65 seats in Chhattisgarh while the BJP is leading in 19.

Janta Congress' Ajit Jogi, the first chief minister of the state is leading in Marwahi while his wife Renu Jogi is leading in Kota.

The Indian National Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party are locked in a close fight in Rajasthan, with both parties below the half-way mark. The BJP is leading in 111 seats while the Congress is trailing with a lead in 108 seats, after multiple swaps over the last hour.

Congress' Lal Thanhawla, who had served as the chief minister since 2013, has lost from the Champhai South constituency. Thanhawla has lost to TJ Lalnuntluanga of the Mizo National Front by a narrow margin of just over 1,000 votes.

The Champhai constituency also represents the change in power that Mizoram has seen. The MNF has swept away the state winning 24 seats out of a possible 40.

Indian equity benchmarks erased early losses and rose amid a neck-and-neck fight between the ruling BJP and the main opposition party in the key state of Madhya Pradesh.

The S&P BSE Sensex climbed 0.6 percent to 35,178 while the NSE Nifty was down 0.6 percent as well to 10,550 as of 13:10 pm. The index saw an intraday high of 10,532 and a low of 10,461.

The 10-year bond yield was down 2 basis points to 7.57 percent after rising as much as 12 basis points. The rupee also pared decline of as much as 1.6 percent against the dollar.

Volatility — as measured by the India VIX — cooled off sharply after it dropped 12.5 percent to 17.84 from intraday high of 20.44.

Click here for live updates on the market.

Congress' Sachin Pilot, who has been touted to be the chief ministerial candidate, is leading his BJP Rival Yoonus Khan in the Tonk constituency by over 15,000 votes. The Tonk constituency has been fluctuated between the Congress and BJP since 1998. Khan, who is currently the state's transport minister, is the only Muslim candidate fielded by the BJP in Rajasthan.

Congress is leading in 91 seats in Rajasthan, while the BJP is gaining ground and leading in 84 seats.

BJP's Vasundhara Raje is leading from the Jhalrapatan constituency in Rajasthan by over 18,000 votes. Raje, who is the incumbent chief minister, is a three-time MLA from this seat. She is defeating Congress' Manvendra Singh, who had only defected from the BJP just before the elections were announced.

The TRS is celebrating its strong lead in Telangana as its earl-election gamble seems to be paying off. The party has a lead in 90 seats out of the total 119.

Here’s a visual of KCR’s son KT Ramarao celebrating at the party office.

The Congress is dominating with a lead in 64 seats in Chhattisgarh as of 12:33 p.m. The BJP - a distant second - is leading in 18 seats. The Bahujan Samaj Party has managed to place a lead in one seat only.

Trends have shown that Chattisgarh now has a third party, says Janta Congress chief Ajit Jogi. “No one would’ve said a party other than the BJP or Congress would win the state,” he said, adding that the party has emerged powerfully.

Emerging trends show democracy in India is intact says Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan

The Congress party is holding on to its dominance in Rajasthan by a narrow margin, a state where it was expected to make a clean sweep.

Congress is currently leading in 92 seats while the BJP is leading in 82 seats.

Here’s what Congress leaders in the state had to say.

The TRS is heading towards the 90-seat mark in the 119-seat Telangana assembly. Congress is a distant second with a lead in 21 seats while the BJP has a lead in only two seats.

The fight for Madhya Pradesh is proving to be a close one.

As of 12:06 a.m., the Congress was leading in 116 seats - crossing the half-way mark in Madhya Pradesh. At the same time, the BJP was leading in 102 seats.

Indian equity benchmarks rebounded while rupee came off day's low after the Bharatiya Janata Party took lead on 115 seats in Madhya Pradesh.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.01 percent or 4 points to 34,964 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index advanced 0.12 percent or 12 points to 10,500.

The BJP and Congress are still head-to-head in Madhya Pradesh, with the parties surpassing each other multiple times over the last 10 minutes. Congress was leading in 113 seats while the BJP was leading in 107 seats, as of 11:54 a.m.

Congress is just short of the half-way mark in Rajasthan. The BJP is leading in 80 seats.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has taken a lead in 115 seats, putting some gap between itself and the Congress in the state. It’s rival is currently leading in 106 seats.

With this, BJP has also touched the half-way mark.

The Congress has crossed the half-way mark in Chhattisgarh with a lead in 57 seats. This mean it can form a government now, should it win. The BJP, on the other hand, was leading in only 23 seats as of 11:36 a.m.

Three out of five exit polls had predicted a close fight between the two parties here.

Indian equity benchmarks came off intraday low levels as buying emerged in TCS, Sun Pharma and Infosys tracking weakness in rupee.

The S&P BSE Sensex declined 0.47 percent or 162 points to 34,797 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index fell 0.4 percent or 45 points to 10,443.

Click here for live updates in the market.

The Congress is set to lose its last feather in India’s north-eastern states as the Mizo National Front leads in 28 out of 40 seats. Mizoram went into elections on 28 November, recording an 80 percent voter turnout.

The BJP currently holds power in Assam, Manipur and Tripura.

India's largest opposition party - Congress - has taken the lead in more than 100 seats in Rajasthan. It will need to cross the 115-seat mark to be able to form a government, should it win. The BJP is close behind, leading in 99 seats.

Gauge of mid cap shares edged higher in an otherwise volatile session. Nifty Midcap rose as much as 0.28 percent to 16,698.

The Bharatiya Janata Party seems to be catching up a bit in Rajasthan, leading in 76 seats. The Congress, however, still has a lead in 91 seats.

Here are some visuals from the BJP party office in Jaipur.

As the winter session begins today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he hopes for progress in all issues on the agenda, and that all parties will put the people first instead of the party.

The Indian National Congress is leading in 46 seats on Chhattisgarh as of 10:36 a.m. while BJP is trailing with a lead in 25 seats. The Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party still has a lead in two seats only.

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi has taken a lead in 74 seats as of 10:24 a.m. The Congress has managed to take a lead in 17 seats while BJP is only ahead in three.

The state election was earlier scheduled to coincide with the 2019 general election.

Rao, or KCR as he is popularly known, said that he was forced to dissolve the state assembly on Sept. 6 after opposition parties wanted to “demoralise the state”. Political commentators reject this view and said that the chief minister is looking to cash in on his current popularity.

India's Sensex posted worst two-day decline since Oct. 8 as election results for five states were underway a day after Urjit Patel shocked investors by resigning from Reserve Bank of India's governorship.

The S&P BSE Sensex fell 1 percent or 378 points to 34,580 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index dropped 110 points to 10,378.

Election results as of 10:10 a.m. showed BJP trailing in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh and a neck and neck fight in Madhya Pradesh. While, in Telangana TRS was leading on 73 seats and MNF was ahead on 25 seats in Mizoram.

Click here for live updates on the market.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP and Rahul Gandhi's Congress are still head-to-head in Madhya Pradesh.

BJP is currently leading in 75 seats which congress is leading in 74.

Key Contestants

Shivraj Singh Chouhan

At 13 years, Chouhan is the longest serving chief minister of the state. While GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) and per-capita incomes have risen under his watch, rural distress has been a major problem—the police firing on farmers in Mandsaur last year is a reminder.

Kamal Nath

The Congress is banking on heavyweights like Kamal Nath and Jyotiraditya Scindia. Kamal Nath’s long political career is founded on his core support base in Chinndwara district, from where he was sent to the Lok Sabha for eight terms.

Jyotiraditya Scindia

Scindia is another key face for the Congress and a probable contender to become chief minister. However, former chief minister and party stalwart Digvijaya Singh has been kept at bay, to prevent factional feuds from spoiling the party’s comeback bid.

The Mizo National Front has crossed the half way mark, leading in 24 seats. The state has a total of 40 seats. This means that the party now has enough seats to form a government, should it win.

With about half as many voters as south Mumbai, Mizoram is one of India’s fastest-growing, healthiest (second) and most-literate states (third).

However, our pre-election analysis of a state with 1.1 million people—as many as in Chandigarh—reveals it is challenged by poverty, high dropout rates, racial tensions and inter-district inequalities, worries that the new government will have to address.

Rahul Gandhi's Congress is leading in 66 out of the 128 seats for which data is available. The BJP is trailing with a lead in 46 seats as of 9:54 a.m.

The Congress has taken a lead in 29 seats in Chhattisgarh while BJP trails with a lead in 12 seats.

The Congress and BJP could face pressure from the alliance between BSP and Ajit Jogi's Janta Congress Chhattisgarh. Mayawati dealt a blow to Congress' hopes of forming a Mahagathbandhan, or grand alliance, when she joined hands with Jogi, a former Congressman.

Current trends, however, show that the BSP is leading in two seats only.

The local Mizo National Front is currently leading in 18 out of the 26 seats for which data is available. Here too, Congress is a distant second, leading in five seats.

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi is leading in 53 seats out of the 70 postal votes available. The distant second, Congress is leading in 9 seats while the BJP is leading in three.

The BJP and Congress are currently neck-and-neck in Madhya Pradesh with both parties leading in 18 seats each. The Bahujan Samaj party is leading in one seat.

Anti-incumbency is expected to be a factor as the state has handed Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan three successive terms. Yet, there are other factors to consider in all 230 constituencies of the central state.

Even as Chouhan remains the favourite to become the chief minister, Scindia, according to most exit polls, is the most popular candidate from the grand old party to become chief minister.

Indian equity benchmarks fell along with rupee and bonds after Reserve Bank of India's Governor Urjit Patel resigned citing personal reasons.

The S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.9 percent or 325 points to 34,636 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index dropped 0.9 percent or 92 points to 10,398.

Click here for live updates on the market.

The Congress Party is leading in 27 seats out the 49 postal votes available. BJP is leading in 18 seats.

Exit polls for 2018 indicate that Congress is set for a clean sweep in the state. The BJP swept to power in the state in 2013, winning 163 out of the 200 seats in the state assembly with a 45 percent vote share.

No government has been voted back to power in Rajasthan over the last two-and-half decades.

Indian rupee falls 1.5 percent to 72.44 per dollar against yesterday's close of 71.34 after Reserve Bank of India's Governor resigned citing personal reasons.

Click here for live updates on the market.

Postal votes are available for nine out of 200 seats in Rajasthan, with Congress leading in five out of the nine seats, as of 8:43 a.m. Four exit polls show that the Congress will cross the majority mark, while one shows a close fight.

Postal votes are available for six out of 90 seats in Chhattisgarh with Bharatiya Janata Party leading in one, Congress leading in three and the Bahujan Samaj Party leading in two seats. Three of five polls have predicted a close battle here.

Postal votes are available for seven out of 230 seats in Madhya Pradesh. Congress is leading in four of the seven seats as of 8:59 a.m.

Postal votes are available for four out of 119 seats in Telangana. BJP is leading in one of the four seats while the Telangana Rashtra Samithi is leading in the remaining three.

Postal votes are available for six out of 40 seats in the state of Mizoram with the Mizo National Front leading in four seats. The MNF is projected to defeat Congress here .

As voting begins, Congress workers are performing a religious ceremony outside Party leader Rahul Gandhi’s residence. Congress is slated to sweep Rajasthan while it may be a close call in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

Counting of votes in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram and Telangana has begun, according to ANI.

Close Fight In MP, Chhattisgarh

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party’s popularity is in doubt as exit polls for elections that ended Friday in five states showed inconclusive projections before general elections next year. Here's the detailed breakup:

Madhya Pradesh

• Two of five polls show Congress in the lead, while one shows BJP retaining power.
• Two polls predict a neck and neck contest.

Rajasthan

• Congress looks set to make a comeback in the state.
• Four exit polls show the Congress crossing the majority mark, while one shows a close fight

Chhattisgarh

• Three of five polls are predicting a close battle.
• Two outlier polls - one each predicting a big victory for the BJP and the Congress.
• The Ajit Jogi–Mayawati combine seems to have been a non starter.

Telangana

• K Chandrashekar Rao's gambit of calling early elections seem to have paid off.
• The Congress-TDP alliance is seen falling well short in three of the four exit polls.

Mizoram

• The Mizo National Front is projected to defeat the Congress Party.

India’s newest state, Telangana, will hold its state election on Dec. 7 after Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao dissolved its assembly in September.

Rao, or KCR as he is popularly known, said that he was forced to dissolve the state assembly on Sept. 6 after opposition parties wanted to “demoralise the state”. Political commentators reject this view and said that the chief minister is looking to cash in on his current popularity. The state election was earlier scheduled to coincide with the 2019 general election.

Telangana was bifurcated from Andhra Pradesh by the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act of 2014, also known as the Telangana Act. Elections were held along with the general election of 2014 in which TRS won 63 out of total 119 seats.

The vote shares of the TRS, Congress and TDP was 35 percent, 25 percent and near-15 percent, respectively. This time, the elections are expected to be a different ballgame, with the Congress, TDP, Telangana Jana Samiti and CPI(M) uniting to form a “Mahakutami” (grand alliance) to take on the ruling party.

No government has been voted back to power in Rajasthan over the last two-and-half decades and that will be the biggest challenge for Bharatiya Janata Party’s Vasundhara Raje when the desert state goes to polls in Dec. 7.

The BJP swept to power in 2013, winning 163 out of the 200 seats in the state assembly with a 45 percent vote share and sending out the Ashok Gehlot-led dispensation. The performance was attributed to anti-incumbency and the “Modi wave” that brought the BJP back to power in the 2014 general elections.

The Congress’ tally fell to 21 seats from the 96 that it won in 2008, its vote share down by nearly 4 percent while that of the BJP rose by 11 percent—in line with historical voting trends. The party hasn’t announced a candidate for the CM’s post, possibly to avert voter base dilution.

On Nov. 28, 2018, Mizoram—the last northeast bastion of the Indian National Congress—will vote to power a new government that will oversee what is planned as India’s gateway to Southeast Asia.

With about half as many voters as south Mumbai, Mizoram is one of India’s fastest-growing, healthiest (second) and most-literate states (third).

However, our pre-election analysis of a state with 1.1 million people—as many as in Chandigarh—reveals it is challenged by poverty, high dropout rates, racial tensions and inter-district inequalities, worries that the new government will have to address.

The electoral battle for Chhattisgarh promises to be an exciting one with a new entrant in what was essentially a two-horse race between the Bharatiya Janata Party led by three-term Chief Minister Raman Singh and the Congress Party.

The Chhattisgarh assembly has 90 seats, with 46 needed to form the government. In the 2013 assembly elections, the BJP bagged 49 seats, and the Congress clinched 39. Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party won one seat.

The Congress and BJP could face pressure from the alliance between BSP and Ajit Jogi's Janta Congress Chhattisgarh. Mayawati dealt a blow to Congress' hopes of forming a Mahagathbandhan, or grand alliance, when she joined hands with Jogi, a former Congressman.

India’s fastest growing state will also throw up a number of socio-economic challenges.