MP polls: Congress eyes 15 districts where it was not a single seat

Bhopal, Nov 7: Both the ruling BJP and Congress have announced candidates for most number of seats in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh. Both have been cautious over distribution of tickets to maximise their winning potential. However, both have concern over the outcome in 15 districts of the state on December 11 when the results will be declared.

According to a report in Jargan, the BJP had won all but two seats in these districts in the 2013 Assembly election and those two were won by the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). The Congress failed to win a single seat in these districts although they are known to be influenced by senior leaders of the party. The Grand Old Party had even failed to win a single seat in a number of these key districts in the 2008 election either. The BJP is in power in the state since 2003 and will be looking to bag the fourth consecutive mandate on November 28.

These 15 districts have a total of 59 seats and the Congress knows very well that if it wishes to reclaim MP after a decade and a half, it has to make serious inroads into the BJP's fortresses in these zones. In 2013, the BJP won 165 out of 230 Assembly seats in MP while the Congress won just 58 and the BSP four.

Some of these 15 districts under the lens of all parties are Umaria, Dewas, Daatia, Hoshangabad, Burhanpur, Khandwa, Agar-Malwa, Narsimhapur and Shajapur.