MP polls: CM predicts huge BJP victory; Nath, Digvijaya confident of Cong win
Bhopal (PTI): The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition Congress on Thursday claimed they would win the Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh, results of which will be declared on December 3.
Exit polls being telecast by various news channels since the evening after the end of voting in Telangana have predicted a close fight in MP, with some of them giving the BJP an edge.
"I have been saying from the beginning and also during the campaign that Prime Minister Narendra Modi affection and leadership, (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah's strategy, (BJP president) JP Nadda's leadership and the hard work of party workers as well as the schemes of the state government will result in a huge victory for the BJP," said Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
Asserting that the "double engine government" of the BJP at the Centre and in MP had brought about huge development, Chouhan told PTI he was never in any doubt about his party retaining power.
"We always felt we will win and we are winning. The love and affection shown by our sisters, nieces and nephews (referring to citizens of the state) has been tremendous. At times, more women were present at our rallies than men. There was no 'kaante ki takkar (tough fight). Our ladli behanas have removed all the thorns," Chouhan said.
Meanwhile, in a post on social media platform X, MP Congress chief Kamal Nath said, "I have always said the country is run by a vision and not by television. Many exit polls have shown that the Congress is forming the government in the state, while some others are saying something different."
"You (party workers) should not get carried away by all these things and should remain focused on the aim like 'Arjun' on the counting to ensure each and every vote cast in favour of the Congress is counted for the party. This will ensure formation of the Congress government with a landslide victory," Nath further said.
Veteran Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, however, pointed out exit poll predictions are varied and nothing can be said about them.
"But I can firmly say Congress will get more than 130 seats in MP. There was a feeling of change in the people and they fought the polls along with Congress workers. The people are fed up with the BJP, its workers and Chouhan's false promises as well as bad governance," asserted Singh, a Rajya Sabha MP and former state CM.
State home minister Narottam Mishra, who contested from Datia seat, said the BJP will win more than 165 seats, adding that exit polls had paved the way for the Congress' "exit" from the state.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
