The Congress party exhibited a strong fight in the Madhya Pradesh civic polls by winning nine presidential posts in 19 civic bodies on Saturday, tying with the BJP, which too won equal numbers.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's charisma could not help the BJP take over the Congress citadel of Raghogarh, hometown of AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh.
The Congress fielded the veteran politician's son, Jaivardhan Singh.
The defeat gives the BJP a lot to think about as most senior Congress leaders had kept themselves away from campaigning for the elections, while Shivraj had conducted several rallies and roadshows.
The elections were unofficially termed as 'semi-finals' for the upcoming Assembly polls due later this year.
Congress' Mahesh Bhawar was elected as the Nagarpalika, president of Sardarpur in Dhar, the spot where the Chief Minister was recently caught on video slapping his bodyguard during a rally.
The footage had brought sizeable criticism on the Chief Minister.
Of the 19 civic bodies that went to the polls in the State, the Congress and BJP won nine seats a piece, while one civic body went to an independent candidate.
At Sendhwa, the BJP candidate won unanimously.
Out of the six Nagarpalikas, the Congress won four while the BJP could win at only two.
However, the BJP salvaged some pride by winning seven nagarpalika parishads while the Congress won five.
One nagarpalika went to an independent candidate.
BJP State president Nandkumar Singh Chauhan, though, claimed that the BJP had won at many places.
Nandkumar Singh Chauhan said that the party would review reasons behind its losses. He accepted the party at places failed to understand the sentiments of the workers and erred in ticket distribution.
Meanwhile, Congress spokesperson KK Mishra said the fake image of being MP's brand ambassador created by the Chief Minister with the help of hollow promises and lies has been shattered by these results. "This augurs well for the party ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls," he added.