Vidisha Lok Sabha Elections 2024: The third phase of the 18th Lok Sabha elections 2024 will commence on May 7. At least 144 candidates will engage in high-octane contests across the nine seats in Madhya Pradesh in the third phase. Vidisha is one of the key battlegrounds of the state, as former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, popularly known as 'Mamaji', returns to his home turf to compete against Congress leader Pratap Bhanu Sharma.
The polling in Madhya Pradesh would take place in nine seats - Morena, Bhind, Gwalior, Guna, Sagar, Vidisha, Bhopal, Rajgarh and Betul. The polling in the Betul constituency was postponed from the second to the third phase following the death of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate Ashok Bhalavi. The party has fielded Ashok's son Arjun Bhalavi from the Betul Lok Sabha seat.
The Vidisha constituency is one of the high-profile seats to go to polls on May 7 along with Guna and Rajgarh. A stronghold of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the constituency is remembered for its links with veteran leaders such as former Prime Minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee and former External Affairs Minister late Sushma Swaraj. The BJP has maintained hold of the constituency since 1989.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan's return to Vidisha
Most importantly, Chouhan is returning to his home turf of Vidisha after almost 20 years in what appears to be a one-sided contest. Shivraj Singh Chouhan won the constituency for the first time in 1991 and maintained his winning streak till 2004, clinching victory for five consecutive times. In 2005, Chouhan became the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and resigned as the MP from Vidisha.
“We will work towards achieving 'Viksit Bharat' under the leadership of PM Modi. It is a very balanced list of candidates, in which youth, women, and others have been given a chance to work,” Chouhan said after he was nominated from Vidisha. He will compete against Congress leader Pratap Bhanu Sharma, but many expect it to be a one-sided contest.
The senior BJP leader is respectfully referred to as 'Mama' in the state due to the welfare schemes for women during his tenure as the CM, particularly his 'Ladli Behna' scheme. In the November 2023 state elections, the BJP bagged 163 of the 230 assembly seats, posting a resounding victory and retaining power in the central state. There was widespread speculation over Chouhan's future after he was replaced by Mohan Yadav as CM, including a possible inclusion in the Union Cabinet.
Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hinted at the senior politician's inclusion in the Cabinet if Chouhan wins the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from his home turf Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh. During his rally in MP's Harda on Wednesday, PM Modi urged people to vote for the ex-CM so he could win from the Vidisha constituency, calling him a 'partner'.
On the other hand, Pratap Bhanu Sharma has previously clinched victory from the Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency in 1980 and 1984. The grand old party has fielded Sharma again to wrest the seat from the BJP, but observers expect Chouhan to win with a record margin.
How did the parties fare in Vidisha in 2019 and 2014?
In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, BJP candidate Ramakant Bhargava won the seat for the first time with a margin of 5,03,084 votes. He was polled 8,53,022 votes with a vote share of 68.19 per cent. He defeated Congress candidate Shailendra Rameshchandra Patel who got 3,49,938 votes (27.97 per cent). The total number of valid votes polled was 12,50,244. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate Geetawali Ahirwar stood third with 14,409 votes (1.15 per cent).
In the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections, BJP stalwart Sushma Swaraj won the seat for the second time in a row. She was polled 7,14,348 votes with a vote share of 66.53 per cent. Congress candidate and Digvijaya Singh's brother Lakshman Singh got 3,03,650 votes (28.28 per cenyt) and was the runner-up. Swaraj defeated Singh by a margin of 4,10,698 votes. The total number of valid votes polled in this constituency was 10,73,473. Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) candidate Kamlesh Sallam came third with 10,824 votes (1.01 per cent).
Past winners in Vidisha
- Sushma Swaraj (BJP): 2009
- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (BJP): 2004
- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (BJP): 1999
- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (BJP): 1998
- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (BJP): 1996
- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (BJP): 1991 bypoll
- Atal Bihari Vajpayee (BJP): 1991
- Raghav Ji (BJP): 1989
- Pratapbhanu Krishna Gopal Sharma (Congress): 1984
- Pratapbhanu Krishna Gopal Sharma (Congress): 1980
- Raghav Ji (BLD): 1977
Second phase of Lok Sabha elections
At least six seats in Madhya Pradesh went to polls in the second phase on April 26 (Friday). The overall voter turnout in the state was recorded at 67.67 per cent, quite higher than the 58.13 per cent in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The seats of Satna, Rewa, Damoh, Khajuraho, Tikamgarh, and Hoshangabad went to polls on Friday.
Over 16 lakh polling officials were deployed over 15.88 crore voters across 1.67 lakh polling stations in the second phase. 34.8 lakh first-time voters were registered to cast their votes. Additionally, there were 3.28 crore young voters in the age group 20-29 years.
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