DESPITE rain in parts of the area, polling remained steady and recorded 71.44 % till the filling of this report. Datia Collector Swapnil Wankhede confirmed that voting concluded peacefully with no major incidents of violence. The main contest is between the ruling BJP’s Ashutosh Tiwari and the Congress party’s Ghanshyam Singh. MP Congress chief Jitu Patwari alleged during the polling that the administrative machinery was acting in a highhanded manner. He charged that the State Government was contesting the by-poll against Congress Ghanshyam Singh. The Congress party alleged fake voting in the Sirol and Jigna areas, prompting candidate Ghanshyam Singh to address officials.

 

Senior BJP leader and former state home minister Narottam Mishra dismissed the allegations as frustration over an impending defeat. Polling was by and large held peacefully. Counting will be held at August 3. As per the Election Commission, there were 2,20,344 voters across 291 polling stations. Ashutosh Tiwari (BJP), Ghanshyam Singh (Congress), and independent candidate Damodar Yadav are in the fray. The seat fell vacant following the disqualification of Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti after he received a two-year sentence in a fraud case. 69.36 percent voter turnout by 5 pm in Datia by-election was noted. Voter turnout decreased after 3 pm, 69.36 percent voter turnout by 5 pm, voting continue until 6 pm.