Shahdol is one of the 29 Lok Sabha constituencies in Madhya Pradesh state in central India. This constituency is reserved for the candidates belonging to the Scheduled Tribes. It covers the entire Anuppur and Umaria districts and parts of Shahdol and Katni districts.
Voting for Madhya Pradesh's 29 parliamentary constituencies will take place in four phases between April 29 to May 19. Shahdol will go to polls on April 29, the fourth of the seven-phase polls. Voting in the by-poll to Chhindwara Assembly constituency would also be held on April 29.
The counting of votes will be held on May 23.
Shahdol Lok Sabha constituency of Madhya Pradesh: Full list of candidates, polling dates
The BJP, which was in power in Madhya Pradesh since 1998 till the 2018 Assembly polls, had won 27 of the 29 seats in the state in 2014 Lok Sabha election. In the 2018 Assembly polls, the Congress won 114 seats while the BJP finished at 109 seats, seven short of a majority. The two parties were locked in a nail-biting contest.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha election, BJP leader Dalpat Singh Paraste had won from the seat, defeating Congress's Rajesh Nandini Singh with a margin of 241,301 votes.
In the 2016 byelection, BJP's Gyan Singh defeated Congress candidate Himadri Dalbir Singh with a margin of 60,383 votes.
For the upcoming election, BJP has fielded Himadari Singh from the seat whereas Congress has named Pramila Singh. Other members in the fray are Bhartiya Shakti Chetna Party's Kamla Prasad Baiga, Peoples Party of India (Democratic)'s Lakshyapat Singh, GGP's Vimal Singh Khorche.
Bahujan Samaj Party, who is contesting on 26 seats in Madhya Pradesh, has named Mohadal Singh Pav from the seat.
Shahdol has been a stronghold of BJP since 1996 and since then, has been won by Congress only once, in 2009.
Shahdol Lok Sabha constituency comprises of eight assembly segments — Jaisingnagar, Jaitpur, Kotma, Anuppurm, Pushprajgarh, Bandhavgarh, Manpur and Barwara.
