MP polls: CM Chouhan, Cong's Nath, Union minister Tomar ahead, Kulaste trails

Even as trends from the initial rounds of counting of Assembly poll votes showed the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was all set to comfortably retain power in Madhya Pradesh, Union Minister Faggan Singh Kulaste was trailing in Niwas in Mandla district. He was behind Congress' Chansingh Barkade by 7,581 votes after the 14th round of counting, as per details made available by the Election Commission.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is leading by a margin of 71,665 votes against his Congress rival Vikram Mastal, an actor famous for his role as Hanuman in a television series, after round 12 in Budhni. Union minister Narendra Singh Tomar is leading by 1195 votes against BSP candidate Balveer Singh Dandotiya after the 11th round of counting in Dimani.

Union minister Prahlad Singh Patel was ahead of his nearest Congress rival Lakhan Singh Patel by a margin of 15,684 votes in Narsinghpur after the tenth round of counting. MP Congress chief Kamal Nath is leading by 20,274 votes against BJP candidate Vivek Bunty Sahu in Chhindwara, where the 13th round of counting is underway. BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya is leading by a margin of 28,271 votes against his Congress rival Sanjay Shukla from Indore-1 seat after the eighth round.

The Aam Aadmi Party's MP chief Rani Agrawal is in fourth place after the seventh round of counting in Singrauli. Agrawal, who is mayor of Singrauli, has got 5,484 votes after 11 rounds of counting. The BJP's Ram Niwas Shah is ahead by 16,463 votes against the Congress' Renu Shah.