Hyderabad:For the first time in the history of Madhya Pradesh, as many as 28 assembly seats went to by-polls at one go, giving the contest virtually the status of a 'mini assembly election' and with main rivals Congress and the BJP pulling out all the stops to ensure the victory of their candidates.
Why the by-bolls?
Twenty-five in Madhya Pradesh assembly fell vacant after sitting Congress MLAs resigned and joined the BJP, which again formed its government in March this year, just 15 months after losing power to India's oldest political party. The three other seats fell vacant after the deaths of sitting legislators.
Resignations by Congress MLAs reduced the strength of the assembly from the original 230 seats to 205, paving the way for the return of saffron rule in the state. The death of the sitting legislators increased the number of vacant seats to 28 - the highest ever in the State's history.
Political equations
The BJP at present has 107 MLAs and it needs to win just nine more seats to reach the magic figure of 116 – the simple majority mark in the 230-member house.
On the other hand, Congress which currently has a strength of 88 legislators needs to win all the 28 seats to reach the majority mark of 116.
Though figures seem to more favorable for the BJP, the final outcome will be decided by a host of other factors as well, including caste and development issues, said a political analyst.
'Betrayer'
The word 'betrayer' has emerged as the most used term by both Congress and the BJP in their verbal slugfest during campaign rallies.
While the BJP claims the Congress betrayed people's trust while in power, the opposition party uses the word to target Jyotiraditya Scindia for switching sides.
In 2018 Scindia said Congress was able to form a government in the state because, for the first time in 70 years, the party won more than 18 seats in the Gwalior-Chambal region which is considered as an all-time stronghold of the party.
However, the people from the region were 'betrayed' by the Congress leadership in the state, the former Guna MP said.
A poll for prestige
Stakes are high for Scindia in the by-polls as out of the total 28 seats, 16 are in the Gwalior-Chambal region from where his supporters had won in 2018 on Congress tickets and joined the BJP nearly than seven months ago. In 2018, Scindia’s popularity was just behind that of current CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, far exceeding that of Kamal Nath, according to a CSDS-Madhya Pradesh Post-Poll Survey 2018. Yet when the party denied to accord him the Chief Minister's post, Scindia rebelled, leading to a fallout with Congress government.
What do the exit polls say?
Various news organisations have predicted that the ruling BJP could win 16 to 18 seats in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly byelections. The Aaj Tak-Axis exit poll predicted that the BJP will win 16 to 18 seats while the opposition Congress will be restricted to 10 to 12 seats when votes will be counted on November 10.
Also Read:Madhya Pradesh by-polls a test for top politicians
