Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram Election 2018 Live: After huge campaigns, polling battle begins in Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram

After a huge campaigning for a week, polling in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram is underway to pick their respective new chief ministers. The Bhartiya Janta Party-ruled Madhya Pradesh, polling has begun in 230 constituencies seats.

The polling for three Maoist-affected assembly seats. Balaghat district - Lanji, Paraswada and Baihar - is scheduled from 7 am. Polling in remaining other 227 seats will start at 8 am.

The voting in hill northeast state Mizoram has begun at 7 am for the 40 constituencies seats with over 7.70 lakh voters expected to cast their votes in the state ruled by Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla, who is seeking a third consecutive term. While the BJP looking to defeat the Congress in its last bastion in the Northeast.

Here are Live updates of Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram Assembly Polls:

15:20 (IST): 50% voting recorded in Madhya Pardesh and 58% voting in Mizoram till 3 pm

13:36 (IST): 31.33% voting recorded in Madhya Pradesh till 1.30 pm

11:50(IST): Election Commission announces Rs 10 lakh each compensation for the kin of the EC officials who passed away while on election duty

11:36 (IST): 21% voting recorded in Madhya Pradesh till 11 am 

11:24 (IST): BJP MP minister caught with Rs 10 lakh inthe car, Congress alleges 'cash-for-vote'

Madhya Pradesh minister and senior BJP leader Devraj Singh Parihar was caught carrying approximately Rs 10 lakh in his car which the Congress alleges were meant for ‘cash for vote’, ABP News reported.

11:04 (IST) 10 candidates put under house arrest in Bhind, say reports

Around 10 candidates, including those of Congress and the BJP in five seats of Bhind district, have been put under house arrest.

11:07 (IST) 29% voter turnout recorded until 11 am

10:25 (IST) Sohan Lal Batham, an Election Commission official, died due to cardiac arrest in Guna. Kailash Patel, a teacher at Utkrisht Vidyalay, Mhow who was deployed at Deepika Bal Mandir in Nehru Nagar in Indore died of cardiac arrest.

10:15 (IST): One Election Commission official in Guna and two in Indore have passed away due to cardiac arrest.

09:55 (IST): The EVM at polling booth number 178 in Dabra is now working 

09:48 (IST): Police seizes campaign material from BJP's polling agents from a polling booth in Saint Mary's, Bhopal as it was within 200 meters of a polling booth. One person taken to custody

09:25 (IST): 15% voting recorded in Mizoram till 9 am in Mizoram

09:01 (IST): Two faulty EVMs in Ujjain have been replaced, 11 VVPAT machines in Alirajpur, 5 VVPAT and 2 EVMs in Burhanpur also replaced.

08:37 (IST): EVM glitches reported at polling booth number 178 in Dabra, Gwalior district. EVMs rectified in Char Imli, Bhopal. Voting delayed by about 15 minutes. 

09:26 (IST) Rahul Gandhi urges Mizoram to vote

"My appeal to the voters of Mizoram: Your vote is not just your constitutional right, it is a blessing & a weapon. Use it wisely today! Vote for peace, prosperity and progress. My best wishes and warmest regards to all my brothers & sisters in Mizoram."

08: 40 (IST): CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan casts his vote at Sihore polling booth says, "he is confident that people of Madhya Pradesh will once again pose their faith in him."

08: 35 (IST) Parties contesting in 40-seats Mizoram assembly elections 2018

Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla and 7 other candidates are contesting two constituencies each. ZPM and Zoramthar are contesting as Independents.

INC: 40
MNF: 40
BJP: 39
ZPM: 36
ZORAMTHAR: 22
PRISM: 13
NPP: 9
NCP: 5
IND: 5

08:24 (IST) Dharmendra Pradhan calls voters, says every vote counts

Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan appealed to the people of Mizoram to cast their votes for "a government committed towards (sic) the development of Mizoram and the North-East."

08:16 (IST) PM Narendra Modi calls on young voters to cast franchise

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to request Mizoram's young voters to come out to cast their votes. "I request my sisters and brothers of Mizoram, particularly the dynamic youth of the state, to turnout in large numbers and vote," he tweeted.

08:20 (IST) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan prays on the banks of Narmada river, in Budhni on the polling day

08:15 (IST: "I have full faith in the people of Madhya Pradesh, they are simple and innocent people who have been robbed for a long time by BJP," says Congress leader Kamal Nath, Congress

08:10 (IST) Vijay Goel took to Twitter to appeals to young voters to cast their frachise

"I appeal to my sisters and brothers of Mizoram, particularly young voters, to turnout in record numbers and cast their vote in the Assembly Elections," he tweeted.

08:04(IST) Polling begins in remaining 227 constituencies in Madhya Pradesh

07:40 (IST) Over 1.80 Lakh security personnel deployed for Madhya Pradesh election

Madhya Pradesh is all set to vote to elect a 230-member assembly, with 1.80 lakh security personnel deployed on duty to ensure peaceful polling in the state.

07:19 (IST) BJP chief Amit Shah urges voters to come out and cast votes

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah took to Twitter to encourage citizens to come out and vote. "Your one vote will lay the foundation of a prosperous and corruption free Mizoram," he tweeted.

07:04 (IST): Polling for 40 constituencies in Mizoram begins. Polling to conclude at 4 pm.

07:01 (IST): Polling in three naxal-hit constituencies begin at 7.00 am

Voting began in three Maoist-dominated constituencies ( Balaghat district - Lanji, Paraswada and Baihar) in MP. Voting in rest of the 227 seats will commence at 8 am.

Assembly Elections 2018:

Madhya Pradesh:

The BJP is seeking a record fourth term rule on Madhya Pradesh under Shivraj Singh Chouhan leadership. Madhya Pradesh has 5.04 crore, eligible voters.

As many as 2,899 candidates, including 1,094 independents, are in the fray for the 230 seats, but the battle is between the Congress and BJP - the Big Two of MP politics.

In 2013 assembly polls, the BJP had won 165 seats, the Congress 58, the BSP four and the independents three seats.

Mizoram:

Polling in the Congress-ruled Mizoram will start at 7 am on Wednesday. The total number of candidates this time is 209, almost 67 higher than 2013. Elections to the 40-member assembly in Mizoram, which has a population of about 10 lakh has 7,70,395 registered voters who will cast their votes in 1,164 polling booths across the state.

Over 1.80 lakh security personnel have been deployed in Madhya Pradesh for the election to the 230-seat assembly. The state has 5.04 crore, eligible voters.

Also, an additional 15 special booths have been created at Kanhmun village in Mamit district for the Bru refugees coming from six camps in Tripura.

The counting of votes is scheduled on 11 December of all the five states witnessing polling.