Over 50% voting for Ahmedabad's Khadia assembly by-polls

Voting for the Khadia assembly by-elections passed off peacefully today with around 50-55% voters exercising their franchise.
       
Election officer Himanshu Parikh said that there was not a single complaint of failure or malfunction of the electronic voting machine (EVM) from any of the booths.       

Both the Congress and the BJP members have lodged complaints against each others for mobilising voters and indulging in bogus voting.
       
Earlier, the Congress had also complained against BJP candidate Bhushan Bhatt for not declaring criminal cases against him.
       
Khadia constituency located in the heart of the city is considered BJP strong hold as it was held for last eight terms by late veteran BJP leader Ashok Bhatt who was also the state Assembly speaker. Bhatt died mid-term on September 29, last year, following which the by-poll were announced.
       
BJP has fielded Ashok Bhatt's son Bhushan, while the Congress has given ticket to the youth leader and local businessman Jagat Shukla.
       
Though the Khadia seat has been held by the BJP for more than 25 years, the fight is expected to be keen this time due to change in the demographic profile of the constituency with many supposedly BJP voters having shifted to other parts of the city.