29 candidates won in 2009 by getting less than 30% votes

Amid debate over the merits of the First Past the Post (FPTP) system, data shows that in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, as many as 29 candidates won by getting less than 30 per cent of votes polled.

Statewise, Uttar Pradesh had 14 such winners whereas Jharkhand had 6 candidates winning with less than 30 per cent of votes polled in their respective constituencies.

Bihar had five such winners. Other states with successful candidates getting less than 30 per cent votes included Madhya Pradesh (2), Jammu and Kashmir (1) and Haryana (1).

Under the FPTP system, a winning candidate in a constituency wins the election by receiving the highest number of votes.

In a multi-party contest in a constituency, votes are often split among contesting candidates. As a result, the winning candidate secures less than 50 per cent.

RJD won Buxar Lok Sabha seat in Bihar getting 21.27 per cent of total votes polled for its candidate Jaganand Singh, which was the lowest percentage of votes bagged by any winner.

Nawada, another Lok Sabha seat from Bihar, had the winner (Bhola Singh of BJP) securing 22.46 per cent of votes polled.

In Jharkhand's Chatra seat, the winning candidate (Inder Singh Namdhari, an Independent) received 22.86 per cent votes, while Nishikant Dubey of BJP got 23.76 per cent votes in Godda. Babulal Marandi of JVM (P) got 22.55 per cent votes in Kodarma.

Uttar Pradesh had 14 successful candidates with less than 30 per cent votes. Winner of Gonda seat (Beni Prasad Verma of Congress) got 25.72 per cent of total votes polled --the lowest percentage for the state.

Ganesh Singh of BJP won the Satna seat from Madhya Pradesh with 29.51 per cent votes polled in his favour. The Rewa seat, also in MP, was won by BSP's Deoraj Singh Patel (28.49 per cent). Independent Hassan Khan won the Ladakh seat in Jammu and Kashmir by bagging 29.84 per cent votes.