Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh votes on Monday with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress facing each other in a hotly contested election to the state Assembly.
Almost all pre-poll surveys are predicting a straight third term in office for the BJP. The BJP is heavily banking on the personal image and popularity of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The Congress which has been out of power for the past 10 years is going to polls with a new face Union Minister and the scion of Gwalior royal family Jyotiraditya Scindia. The Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Ajay Singh is also in the race for the post of Chief Minister should the Congress come to power.
The BJP government in MP has seen three chief ministers since it rode to power in 2003. Shivraj Singh Chouhan has consolidated his position over the years and some say he has endeared himself to the masses by taking a keen interest in public work.
Unlike the Congress, the ruling party is united and there is no other contender for the post of Chief Minister. On the other hand the faction ridden Congress has at least half a dozen Chief Ministerial aspirants.
The Congress has also witnessed revolt and defection after the announcement of candidates for the Assembly elections. Jyotiraditya Scindia and Digvijaya Singh's rivalry came out in the public during Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi's election meetings. Ajay Singh also has strong reservations about making Scindia the chief minister if the party returns to power.
According to a Bhopal based veteran journalist Chandrakant Naidu defections have affected the ruling party, too, but they have not bled it as badly as the ones that have hit the Congress. The BJP's dirty tricks department has skilfully and consistently pulled the rug from under the Opposition's feet at crucial stages.
Chouhan is contesting from two Assembly seats - Budhni and Vidisha. He is currently the MLA from Budhni. His decision has set the tongues wagging and the Congress is poking fun at him saying that he is scared of defeat in his own seat.
According to local BJP leaders Chouhan is contesting from Vidisha to ensure that the party wins that seat too. Vidisha is represented by former finance minister Raghavji, who was sacked after a CD, in which he was allegedly seen sodomising his assistant was leaked to the media.
Ajay Singh is contesting from his family stronghold of Churhat, earlier represented by his father the late chief minister Arjun Singh.
The BJP which stormed to power with 173 seats in the 230-member Assembly in 2003, managed to win just 143 seats in 2008. The Congress improved its strength by climbing from a mere 38 seats in 2003 to 71 in 2008.
Two other minor parties in the fray are Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Gondwana Ganatantra Party (GGP). They have some pockets of influence and expected to win a few seats. They can play a major role only if the voters deliver a hung Assembly.
Statistics
Total Seats - 230
General Seats - 148
SC - 35
ST - 47
Total Number of Voters in MP - 4,64,57,724
Total Number of Polling Booths - 53,896
Result - December 8
Key Candidates
BJP - Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Budhni and Vidisha), Kailash Vijayvarghiya (Mhow) and Yashodhara Raje Scindia (Shivpuri).
Congress - Ajay Singh (Churhat), Suresh Pachauri (Bhojpur), Jai Vadhan Singh (son of former CM Digvijaya Singh from Raghoghar)
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