The fight between the two national parties is neck-to-neck in Chhattisgarh, and the Bharatiya Janata Party is enjoying an edge of five seats as counting progresses in the state.
As per the Election Commission, in the elections held for the 90-seat Assembly, at 11am, BJP leads in 43 seats and Congress in 37. The Hamar Raj party and the Communist Party of India lead in one seat each. Congress Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, who is contesting from Patan, leads against BJP candidate Vijay Baghel by a margin of 187 votes.
State BJP chief Arun Sao is leading in Lormi seat by a margin of 582 votes against Congress' Thaneshwar Sahu after two rounds of counting, as per the EC.
According to election officials, the counting of votes started at 8am on Sunday and security personnel are maintaining a strict vigil in counting centres in the state's 33 districts, including those affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE).
