Congress Leaders Reach Governor’s Residence

After a marathon 24-hour counting, the Congress has successfully managed to end the BJP’s winning streak in Madhya Pradesh as it emerged as the single-largest party with 114 seats, two short of the majority, the final result released by the Election Commission shows. The BJP, which gave a close fight despite strong anti-incumbency, settled down with 109 seats. Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP has managed to win two seats, the election body said.

The votes between Congress and the BJP started swinging widely within hours after counting of votes for the 230-member assembly began at 8 am on Tuesday. The drama continued till late evening after which the Congress managed to gain a slight lead over the BJP.

Sensing victory, the Congress opened backchannel talks with the BSP, Samajwadi Party (SP), Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) and independents who were leading, the sources said.

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.