Congress set to form govt in Chhattisgarh; Raman Singh wins against Vajpayee's niece

Raipur, Dec 11: Three times Chief Minister Raman Singh won against former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's niece Karuna Shukla in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon. The Congress is, however, set to form the government in the state as the party is leading in 66 of the 90 seats in the state.

Rajnandgaon constituency is considered to be the fortress of Raman Singh. He was elected twice from Rajnandgaon in 2008 and 2013 by a comfortable margin

Shukla is also a seasoned politician. Shukla has been national president of BJP's Mahila Morcha. She ended her 32-year-long association with the BJP in 2014 and joined Congress. She contested 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Bilaspur constituency in Chhattisgarh and defeated BJP's Lakhan Lal Sahu.

As of 11 am, the BJP was leading in 21 seats while Congress in 59. Chhattisgarh assembly has 90 seats and the majority mark needed to form the government is 46. Counting of votes began at 8 am, and the result would be known by early evening.