Assembly polls: Congress ahead in 3 states, BJP in 2

New Delhi, Dec 08: The Congress appears to be heading towards victory in Rajasthan and Mizoram and within handshaking distance of power in the national capital Delhi, while the BJP is leading the race in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh as per trends available following the start of counting of votes this morning for the just-concluded Assembly Elections. The major upset appears to be in Rajasthan, where the BJP government headed by Vasundhara Raje is trailing behind the Congress which may come back to power after a gap of five years.

Rajasthan In 200-member Rajasthan Assembly, Congress is leading in 105 seats while the BJP is ahead in 72 in trends available for all the constituencies. Mayawati-led BSP was ahead in 6 seats, while CPI(M) was leading in two and JD(U) and SP in one each. Others were leading in 13 seats. AICC general secretary Ashok Gehlot, who spearheaded the party's campaign in the state, and Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje were leading from their Sardarpura and Jhalrapatan constituencies respectively. Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Sumitra Singh was trailing behind the Congress candidate in Mandawa constituency.

Delhi In Delhi, Sheila Dikshit appeared to be on the verge of creating a hat trick as the ruling Congress has won three seats and is leading at 35 other constituencies, while BJP is ahead in 26 seats in the 70-member Assembly. Mukesh Sharma of Congress was the first to emerge victorious in the Delhi Assembly polls by defeating his nearest rival BJP's Pawan Sharma in Uttam Nagar by a margin of 7,187 votes. Sharma, who is entering the Assembly for the fourth consecutive term, has shifted to Uttam Nagar constituency following delimitation. Another two-time MLA who won this time was Mahabal Mishra. He defeated his nearest BJP rival Pradyuman Rajput by 13,981 votes. Ministers A K Walia (Laxmi Nagar), Arvinder Singh Lovely (Gandhi Nagar), Yoganand Shastri (Mehrauli), Harun Yusuf (Ballimaran) and Raj Kumar Chouhan (Mangolpuri) were ahead in the race. Delhi Assembly Speaker Chaudhury Prem Singh, who has never lost an election since 1958, is leading in Ambedkar Nagar. Delhi BJP president Harsh Vardhan is trailing in Krishna Nagar constituency.

Madhya Pradesh BJP appeared on its way to retain power in Madhya Pradesh having established leads in 125 of the 230 seats in the State Assembly as per the latest available trends. The Congress was trailing behind with a lead in 67 seats while others were ahead in 23 constituencies. Factors like anti-incumbency, intra-party rivalry and challenge posed by former party leader Uma Bharti seemed to have had no impact on the ruling BJP, according to party leaders. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan was ahead in Budhni. Uma Bharti's Bharatiya Janshakti Party was trailing in all the 216 seats it contested, including in Tikamgarh where Bharti is in fray.

Chhattisgarh The race for power in Chhattisgarh appeared headed for a tight finish with ruling BJP and its principal challenger Congress having established lead in 44 and 42 constituencies respectively in the 90-member Assembly. With a party needing 46 seats to secure a simple majority in the 90-member Assembly, BJP was ahead in 44 seats while Congress in 42. Other parties were ahead in four seats -- BSP in two and NCP and CPI in one each. Among the political heavyweights of the two main parties who are leading are Chief Minister Raman Singh in Rajnandgaon, his predecessor Ajit Jogi in Marwahi, Home Minister Ram Vichar Netam in Ramanujganj (ST), Speaker Prem Prakash Pandey in Bhilai city, Sports Minister Brij Mohan Agarwal (Raipur City South) and Health Minister Amar Agarwal (Bilaspur). However, state BJP chief Vishnu Dev Sahai was trailing in Pathalganj constituency after having led initially against senior Congress leader Rampukar Singh.

Mizoram The Congress appeared inching towards a victory in Mizoram after being in political wilderness for a decade, winning 10 seats and leading in seven constituencies with the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF) on its way out. The state has 40 seats. Former three-time Chief Minister and Congress leader of Mizoram Lalthanhawla won both the seats he contested winning the South Tipui seat against F Lalthanzuala of the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF) by 96 votes and the Serchhip Assembly seat by 952 votes. PC Lalthanliana of the Congress won the Lunglei North seat defeating his nearest MNF rival by 705 votes, while Congress candidate RL Pianmawia won the Tuivawl seat. He defeated his MNF rival by 473 votes. According to available trends, the main opposition Congress is leading in seven seats and the MNF is ahead by a slender margin in two constituencies. The fight for political supremacy is between the MNF and the Congress. The MNF was in power in Mizoram for the last two terms and was expecting a third straight term. In the 2003 assembly elections, the ruling MNF secured 21 seats while Congress bagged 12 and seven went to other smaller parties. Most of the states where the counting is being held are those where Congress and the BJP are major contenders for power and the outcome may help gauge the voter mood ahead of the general elections due early next year although issues involved would be different.

Courtesy Zee news