Madhya Pradesh home minister and BJP candidate Narottam Mishra on Friday said pressing the Lotus button (symbol of the saffronn party) will ‘bring happiness to India’, however, ‘celebrations in Pakistan’ will ensue if any political party other than BJP wins the ongoing state assembly election. He gave the remarks after casting his vote in Datia assembly constituency.

“In Madhya Pradesh, pressing the Lotus button is seen as a signal for the army to reinforce border security. The prospect of PM Modi winning has left Pakistan disappointed. The Kamal button is seen as a deterrent to terrorists, instilling fear in them,” Mishra told PTI.

The Congress has denounced the minister’s remarks saying his claim has no fact or truth. Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) chief and party’s candidate Kamal Nath said, “Let Narottam Mishra himself win first and then talk about Pakistan.” He further said that the BJP is making such remarks because it is not left with anything. “They are saying such things out of frustration,” he added.

A total of 64,626 polling stations have been set up in the state. Among these, 64,523 are main booths and 103 associate (sahayak) stations, where the number of electors is more than 1,500, CEO Anupam Rajan said.

As many as 5,60,58,521 voters, including 2,87,82,261 males, 2,71,99,586 females and 1,292 third gender persons, are eligible to exercise their franchise. The total number of voters also includes service and overseas electors, Rajan informed.