DATIA: The Datia Assembly byelection in Madhya Pradesh recorded a voter turnout of 71.4 per cent by the close of polling on Thursday, with voting remaining largely peaceful despite rain, a few technical glitches and allegations of irregularities from the Congress. The turnout was notably lower than the 2023 Assembly election, when the constituency had recorded 80.2 per cent voting. The contest is primarily between BJP candidate Ashutosh Tiwari and Congress nominee Ghanshyam Singh, while Azad Samaj Party candidate Damodar Singh Yadav and 18 others are also in the fray. More than 2.20 lakh registered voters were eligible to cast their ballots across 291 polling stations, including 186 booths in rural areas and 105 in urban pockets. Datia Collector and District Election Officer Swapnil Wankhede said polling began on schedule at all booths and arrangements had been made for free and fair voting. Minor technical problems involving VVPATs, ballot units and control units were reported at some polling stations, though election officials said these were resolved without significantly affecting the voting process.

The polling day also saw political allegations from the Congress, which claimed fake voting had taken place at booths in Sirol and Jigna. Congress candidate Ghanshyam Singh visited the locations and raised the matter with election officials. The party also accused the BJP of attempting booth capturing at Polling Booth No. 51. Singh alleged that one of his polling agents was taken away by police and that a BJP polling agent tried to influence voters before being removed by CRPF personnel. He demanded an impartial inquiry and claimed that the incident had been captured on CCTV. The allegations were rejected by former Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra, who said Congress routinely raises such accusations when it expects defeat. Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari, meanwhile, expressed confidence that his party would win the seat comfortably despite what he described as the BJP's full organisational push in the constituency. No final finding on the Congress allegations was stated in the report.

Weather also created problems at a few locations during the Datia bypoll, with rain causing waterlogging at some polling booths and temporarily affecting voting. In Lakhanpur village, residents initially decided to boycott the election over the lack of road connectivity. Officials later spoke to the villagers and persuaded them to participate in the polling process. The byelection was required following the disqualification of former Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti after his conviction in a fraud case. Datia had witnessed strong voter participation in the 2023 Assembly election, but Thursday's turnout of 71.4 per cent was around nine percentage points lower. With polling now complete, attention has shifted to the counting of votes scheduled for August 3. The result will decide whether the BJP manages to wrest the seat from Congress or the opposition party retains its hold on the constituency. While Ashutosh Tiwari and Ghanshyam Singh remain the principal contenders, the votes secured by Damodar Singh Yadav and the other candidates could also influence the final margin in what has largely developed into a BJP-Congress battle.