Union Minister Prahlad Patel, other BJP star candidates cast their vote as polling continues in MP

BHOPAL: Union Minister Prahlad Patel on Friday prayed at the River Naramada's bank in Madhya Pradesh where polling is underway for the 230-member Assembly.

Speaking to ANI about the polls, the BJP candidate from Narshinghpur said, "I come to the shores to ask for Maa's (Narmada) mercy... I ask for strength so that I can do better in my life, not for myself but for society and the country..."

The Union Minister said that Maa Narmada is the lifeline of Madhya Pradesh. "At present, we only take from her and don't do anything in return...," he added.

Meanwhile, BJP candidate from Indore-1, Kailash Vijayvargiya and his wife Asha Vijayvargiya cast their vote at a polling booth in Indore.

Before casting his vote, Vijayvargiya offered prayers at his residence and later at a temple in Indore. Vijayvargiya is one of the BJP party's heavyweights and has been roped in by the central leadership to contest in the state. He has been fielded from the Indore-1 constituency.

The BJP has fielded three Union Ministers and four Lok Sabha MPs in the ongoing Madhya Pradesh Polls. The three Union ministers are Narendra Singh Tomar (agriculture), who also heads the BJP state election management committee, Prahlad Singh Patel (MoS food processing and jal shakti) and Faggan Singh Kulaste (MoS steel and rural development).

Lok Sabha MPs, Rakesh Singh, a former state BJP chief, Ganesh Singh, Riti Pathak and Uday Pratap Singh, are also in fray. The Congress is hoping to wrest power from the BJP in Madhya Pradesh. State Congress Chief Kamal Nath, who in 2018 led a 15-month long Congress government in the state, says he is confident of the Congress coming to power.

"There's a lot of excitement among the voters in Madhya Pradesh. They want to keep their future secured... They distributed liquor and money" Kamal Nath said after exercising his franchise. The BJP however remains confident that it will continue to hold power in the 230 member assembly.

"The Congress candidates did nothing in 35 years. In any of the public meetings held by Digvijaya Singh, Kamal Nath and Priyanka Gandhi, none of them talked about development in Datia. Even the candidate of Congress didn't talk about development...All of our speakers talked about development...I would like to appeal to people to press the button of BJP" said former state Home Minister and BJP candidate from Datia Narrotam Mishra after casting his vote. The counting of votes for the five states will be done on December 3.