In Madhya Pradesh’s Datia, Congress candidate Ghanshyam Singh has taken a lead. In a closely fought contest, Congress candidate Ghanshyam Singh held a narrow lead over BJP’s Ashutosh Tiwari after the 15th round of counting in the Datia Assembly by-election in Madhya Pradesh, officials said on Monday.
As per the latest ECI figures, Singh has received 31,436 votes while Tiwari has secured 28,141 votes after seven rounds of counting, leaving the Congress candidate ahead by a slim margin. Eight more rounds of counting are left now.
The contest in Datia is between BJP candidate Ashutosh Tiwari and Congress nominee Ghanshyam Singh. Voting was conducted on July 30, and the constituency recorded a turnout of 71.44 per cent.
In the 2023 assembly elections, Congress candidate Rajendra Bharti defeated BJP leader and former state home minister Narottam Mishra by more than 7,500 votes. The seat later became vacant after a Delhi court sentenced Bharti to three years in prison in a fraud case in April. He was later granted bail.
The BJP this time chose not to field Mishra in the by-election and instead gave the ticket to Tiwari. The decision led to massive protests by Mishra’s supporters.
The Datia bypoll is also the first electoral test for newly appointed BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal.