Madhya Pradesh assembly elections 2018 highlights: Polling ends, 75% voter turnout

ANI photo

BHOPAL: The polling for 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly began on Wednesday morning. The voting began at 8 am and ended at 5 pm in 230 seats, while in three assembly segments in the Naxal-affected Balaghat district - Lanji, Paraswada and Baihar - voting timings are from 7 am to 3 pm.

As many as 2,899 candidates, including 1,094 independents, are in the fray for the 230 seats, but the main contest is between the Congress and BJP. The state has nearly 5.04 crore eligible voters.

This high-stakes electoral battle will witness the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) eyeing a fourth straight term and Opposition Congress fighting for a comeback. The outcome of this Assembly elections could prove as a precursor to the Lok Sabha 2019 elections.

Results will be declared on December 11.

Here are the highlights from the battleground in Madhya Pradesh:

*  Voting recorded in Baihar was 78%, Lalji had a voting percentage of 79.07% while Paraswada recorded 80.06% votes.  Polling at the three constituencies ended at 3 pm. 

* 75% provisional voter turnout recorded at the end of polling, says Election Commission in Delhi.

* 74.6% voter turnout recorded till 6 pm.

* Polling ends in Madhya Pradesh. 65.5% voter turnout recorded, says poll officials. 

* 50%  voter turnout recorded till 3 pm.

* 34.99% voter turnout recorded till 2 pm.

*"I had already cast my vote. When people asked me when those from media asked me whom I have voted for I showed this (palm). What else could have I done? Show a lotus?" says Kamal Nath after showing his election symbol after casting his vote in Chhindwara.

* Section 144 imposed in Pipla Narayanwar village after reports of violence. Police deployed in the area

*  "I am 100 per cent sure that BJP will come to power for the fourth time and will have absolute majority. We have set a target of 200 seats this time and lakhs of volunteers are working to achieve this goal," said Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Speaking about his Congress opponent Arun Yadav, Chouhan said that the party has done a "lot of injustice" to him. "They (Congress) first removed him from the post of state unit president and then gave him a ticket from Budhni," he claimed.

* 21% voting recorded in Madhya Pradesh till 11 am.

* "There have been many complaints of EVMs malfunctioning, have written to Election Commission. Have requested that voting time in these polling booths should be extended to compensate for the delay," says Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia.

* SP worker Dipak Singh Kushwaha, a supporter of party candidate Narendra Singh Kushwaha, opened fire at polling booth in Panchayat office. He has been arrested by police. 

* One Election Commission official in Guna, and two in Indore have passed away due to cardiac arrest. Compensation of Rs 10 lakh announced.

* 100 EVMs replaced across the state, says Election Commission.

* PM Modi tweets:

आज मध्य प्रदेश में मतदान का दिन है। प्रदेश के सभी मतदाताओं से मेरा आग्रह है कि वे पूरे उत्साह के साथ लोकतंत्र के महापर्व में भाग लें और भारी संख्या में मतदान करें। — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2018

* Congress chief Rahul Gandhi tweets: 

मध्यप्रदेश के मतदाताओं से विनम्र आग्रह।

वोट प्रजातंत्र की सबसे बड़ी ताक़त है।
आज अपना वोट ज़रूर डालें क्योंकि,
‘वक़्त है बदलाव का’।

आइये, सच को स्वीकारें,
नफ़रत को नकारें,
वादा निभाएँ, हाथ बढ़ाएँ,
हर घर ख़ुशहाली लाएँ,
मध्यप्रदेश में, लोगों की सरकार बनाएँ। pic.twitter.com/AdFB3bqh6K — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) November 28, 2018

* 6.32 % voter turnout in MP till 9 am.

* More reports of EVM malfunction:

• Bhind Vidhan Sabha polling booth numbers 72 and 132
• Gohad Vidhan Sabha booth number 114
• Village Kakradra Kurd Pooling booth 209

*Violence reported from Jhapdi Padla village in Sendhwa Vidhan Sabha seat. Two bikes set on fire, firing by locals. A case has been registered.

* Voting yet to begin in Vidhan Sabha Polling booth number 3. People waiting in long queues. 

* Presiding officer on election duty at Vidhasabha 5, Kailash Patel, suffers a heart attack. 

* Sohamlal Batha, an officer on election duty, dies of cardiac arrest in Guna.

* Two faulty EVMs in Ujjain have been replaced, 11 VVPAT machines in Alirajpur, 5 VVPAT and 2 EVMs in Burhanpur also replaced.

* EVM malfunctions being reported from several places:

• Tikuria Tola Government Intermediate Shala polling booth number 181
• Little Angels School in Bhopal's Kohefiza
• Islam Nagar
• Shajapur Lalpura polling booth number 179
• Polling booth numbers 186, 187 in Ater
• Polling booth number 224 in Itarsi
• Polling booth number 142 
• Polling booth numbers 32,33,38,47,49,93
• Dakshin Paschim Polling booth number 152
• Mehgaon polling centre nuber 160
• Govindpure polling booth number 135
• Vidhansabha area 131 booth number 74 
• Polling booth number 93 and 81 (Saint Joseph) in Kachhpura 

*Madhya Pradesh Minister Yashodhara Raje Scindia casts her vote at a polling station in Shivpuri. She is up against Congress' Siddharth Lada. #MadhyaPradeshElections2018 pic.twitter.com/FrpyOXfZ7m

— ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2018

* Another EVM malfunction reported from Tikuria Tola Government Intermediate Shala polling booth number 181. The polling was scheduled to begin from 8 am, but now will begin at 9 am.

#MPKiMahabharat #सतना टिकुरिया टोला शासकीय माध्यमिक शाला में पोलिंग बूथ नंबर 181 में EVM खराब,8 बजे से शुरू होनी थी वोटिंग,लोग हो रहे परेशान,बूथ अधिकारी ने बताया 1 घंटे के बाद होगी वोटिंग pic.twitter.com/uhsbFCCDNO — Zee MP-Chhattisgarh (@ZeeMPCG) November 28, 2018

* EVM malfunction reported from polling booth number 178 in Dabra, Gwalior district.

*Congress leader Kamal Nath offers prayers at a Hanuman temple in Chhindwara #MadhyaPradeshElections2018 pic.twitter.com/tjdOwNrwtJ

— ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2018

*  Shivraj Singh Chouhan, along with his wife, cast their votes from Budhni constituency. "I urge everyone to vote," says Chouhan while addressing the media.

*Voting underway for 230 assembly seats in #MadhyaPradeshElections, visuals from a polling booth in Indore pic.twitter.com/jxvUY9xVCl

— ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2018

* "I have full faith in the people of Madhya Pradesh, they are simple and innocent people who have been robbed for a long time by BJP," says Congress leader Kamal Nath.

* Shivraj Singh Chouhan, along with his wife and two sons, perform puja as voting begins in MP.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan prays on the banks of Narmada river, in Budhni. Voting in the state is underway. #MadhyaPradeshElections2018 pic.twitter.com/Hh9hjNds8Y — ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2018

* Nearly 65,000 polling booths will be set up for the Assembly elections, including 2000 booths that would be entirely women-operated.

"3 Lakh government employees including 45,000 women have been deployed on polling duty. 65,000 polling booths are being made in the state. Around 2,000 entirely women-only polling booths would be functional. 160 polling booths will be fully operated by differently-abled personnel," Chief Electoral Officer, Madhya Pradesh, VL Kantha Rao said.

* Voting began at sensitive areas at 7 am.

*Visuals from a polling station in Bhopal. Polling for 227 constituencies in the state will begin at 8 am, while voting for 3 constituencies has already begun. #MadhyaPradeshElections2018 pic.twitter.com/RnjsoctPbV

— ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2018

* The contest is mainly between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress, though the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Samajwadi Party (SP) are also in the fray. Among the 2,907 candidates in Madhya Pradesh, the BJP has fielded candidates in all 230 seats, while the Congress is contesting in 229 seats leaving one seat, Jatara in Tikamgarh district, for Sharad Yadav-led Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD). The BSP has fielded 227 candidates and the SP is contesting in 51 seats. There are 1,102 Independent candidates. In the last polls, of the 230 seats, the BJP won 165, Congress 58, BSP four and Independents three.  Over five crore registered voters in Madhya Pradesh -- 2,63,01,300 men, 2,41,30,390 women and 1,389 of the third gender -- will decide the fate of candidates. The tenure of 230-member House expires on January 7, 2019.