Rajasthan, Telangana Assembly Elections 2018: Stage Set For Polling in High-Stakes Battle
Polling will start at 7 am for assembly elections in Telangana and at 8 am in Rajasthan, while the results will be declared on December 11.
Jaipur/Hyderabad, December 7: Stage is all set for polling in Rajasthan and Telangana where stakes are high for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Congress and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). Polling will start at 7 am for assembly elections in Telangana and at 8 am in Rajasthan, while the results will be declared on December 11.
In Rajasthan, the main contest is between the BJP, which is fighting anti-incumbency to retain power, and the Congress, which left no stone unturned to make a comeback in the state. Notably, Rajasthan has not voted the same party to power for more than one term in the last 20 years. Over 4.74 crore registered voters will decide the fate of 2,274 candidates. Satta Bazar Prediction Ahead of Exit Poll Results 2018: Congress May Win MP & Rajasthan, BJP to Retain Chhattisgarh, Says Matka.
In the 2013 assembly elections in Rajasthan, the BJP won 163 out of the 200 assembly seats. The Congress, on the other hand, bagged just 21 seats. All opinion polls have predicted a Congress win.
In the 119-member Telangana assembly, the ruling TRS is facing a challenge from the Congress-led People's Front, which also includes Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Communist Party of India and Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS), and the BJP. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) is contesting eight seats. The Bahujan Left Front, led by the CPI-M and BSP, is also in the fray. Exit Poll Results For MP, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Mizoram Assembly Elections 2018: Know Time & Schedule.
A total of 280,747,22 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise. Political fortunes of 1,821 candidates will be decided in the first full-fledged election in India's youngest state. In the 2014 Telangana assembly elections, the TRS won 63 seats. Congress came in next with 21 seats, while the AIMIM secured seven. The BJP bagged five and its then ally, TDP, got 15.
The Telangana assembly was dissolved on September 6 on the recommendation of chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao-led TRS government, more than eight months ahead of the expiry of its term. Tight security has been made in both the states and the results will be declared on December 11 along with those of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram.
In Rajasthan, over 52,000 polling booths have been installed, including at least one all-women booth in each constituency. More than 2 lakh EVMs and VVPAT machines are being used for the polling. Telangana has 51,796 polling stations, an increase of 14.25 per cent over the previous election in 2013.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 07, 2018 12:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).