MP: Datia bypoll counting begins amid tight security, BJP-Congress on edge
Counting of votes for the bypoll to the Datia assembly constituency in Madhya Pradesh commenced on Monday, officials said.
The bypoll was necessitated after a Delhi court in April this year sentenced Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti to three years' imprisonment in a cheating case, leading to the termination of his assembly membership.
The counting process began at 8 am at the Polytechnic College under tight security, starting with postal ballots before moving on to Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
A total of 21 tables, including 20 for counting of EVMs, were set up at the facility, an official said.
The Congress fielded Ghanshyam Singh from the seat while the BJP nominated Ashutosh Tiwari. Nineteen other candidates also contested the bypoll.
Voting for the Datia bypoll was held on July 30, and recorded 71.44 per cent turnout.
Bharti had defeated BJP leader and former state home minister Narottam Mishra by over 7,700 votes in the 2023 assembly elections.
In the 230-member Madhya Pradesh assembly, the BJP has 164 MLAs, the Congress 64 and the Bharat Adivasi Party one legislator.
The outcome of the bypoll may not alter the stability of the BJP government in the state, but political observers believe it carries wider implications, coming against the backdrop of recent student protests and the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as Union education minister.
According to analysts, the closely watched result could significantly shape the political standing of both the ruling BJP and Opposition Congress in the state ahead of the 2028 assembly elections.
The Datia bypoll is also the first electoral test for newly appointed BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal.
