NEW DELHI: In 2013 Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party had decimated its closest opposition party Congress to win by a massive margin. The BJP had bagged 165 seats while the Congress was a distant second with just 58 seats. The Bahujan Samaj Party 4 and the Independents bagged four and three seats respectively.
In the 230-seat Assembly, 148 are general seats, 35 are reserved for SC and 47 are reserved for ST candidates.
In the 2013 polls, 33,209,333 votes were polled at 53942 polling stations in the state with an average of 865 voters per polling station. Of the 2583 candidates, 2383 were males while 200 were females. The deposits of 2080 candidates had been forfeited in the 2013 elections.
In 33 constituencies, over 15 candidates had applied for the same seat and there was not even one seat where there was any candidate was fighting unopposed.
As per the final electoral rolls of the Election Commission, 5,03,34,260
voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in Madhya Pradesh.
There has been a 21.24 per cent increase in the number of polling stations in Madhya Pradesh this year. As opposed to the 53,896 polling stations in 2013, the Election Commission has said that there will be 65,341 polling stations this year.
The Commission has also upgraded the status of facilities at the polling booths from the earlier concept of Basic Minimum Facilities (BMF) to Assured Minimum Facilities (AMF). Instructions
have been issued to the Chief Electoral Officer to ensure that every Polling Station is equipped with facilities like drinking water, shed, toilet, ramp for the physically challenged voters, a standard voting compartment etc. for the convenience and facilitation of voters.
