Bhopal, Nov 23 Congress has won the Vijaypur Assembly seat with a margin of 7,364 votes marking the second consecutive win for the grand old party.
Congress Mukesh Malhotra, who had joined the party during the Lok Sabha elections this year, defeated BJP's heavyweight and state Forest Minister Ramniwas Rawat with a margin of over 7000 votes.
As per the Election Commission, Malhotra secured a total of 100,469 votes against Rawat's 93,105 votes while Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP) candidate Netram Devaria Sahriya secured third position with 1,099 votes.
Interestingly, former MLA Ramniwas Rawat, who had won six elections (between 1990 and 2023) from Vijaypur on Congress' symbol, was contesting his seventh, but the first on BJP's ticket.
He had won the last assembly election in November last year with a margin of more than 17,000 votes, however, later he resigned from the party and joined the BJP and was then included in Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's cabinet.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the state BJP unit will introspect over the Ramniwas Rawat's defeat.
"Vijaypur has been a stronghold of the Congress for several decades, however, the victory margin this time was reduced to 7,000 against 17,000 in the 2023 election," Yadav said.
Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Jitu Patwari termed it a victory for party workers while expressing that Vijaypur's win will boost the confidence of the party cadre.
"BJP-supported goons, dacoits and mafia were contesting the elections in Vijaypur, yet the Congress workers showed the power of truth," Patwari added.
Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath also congratulated Malhotra for his victory, saying that the victory in Vijaypur is a clear lesson for those who betray the people.
"Many congratulations to Congress candidate Mukesh Malhotra for the spectacular victory in the Vijaypur Assembly by-election. This victory is the result of the hard work of Congress workers and is a clear lesson for those who betray the Congress," Kamal Nath said.
The vote counting for the Budhni bypolls, the bastion of Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is still underway but BJP's Ramakant Bhargava has maintained a lead with a margin of over 8,000 votes against Congress' Rajkumar Patel.
--IANS
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