New Delhi

The counting of votes in elections to the 40-member Mizoram assembly began Monday morning. The counting process began at 8 am and postal ballots will be counted for the first half of an hour, a senior official with the election commission said.

According to the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Mizoram, the counting will be conducted in 13 centres across the state and 40 counting halls.

There will be 399 EVM tables and 56 postal ballot tables in 40 counting halls across the state. Nearly 4000 personnel will be involved in the counting of votes, as per the state election commission.

After a saffron wave swept the Hindi heartland, taking the BJP to decisive mandates in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, and the Congress wrested Telangana from the BRS, all eyes have now shifted to the Northeast as Mizoram is to reveal its mandate on Monday.

The counting in the tiny Northeast state, which was initially scheduled for December 3, Sunday, along with four other states, was pushed back by a day following representations to the Election Commission by civil society, citing an important day in the religious calendar in the Christian-majority state.

Considering appeals by political parties and civil society organisations, citing the special significance of Sunday for the people of Mizoram, the Election Commission on November 29 officially announced the deferment of the counting of votes in the state to Monday.

Four major contenders are in fray in the northeastern state, which voted to elect its 40-member legislative assembly on November 7.

These include the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF), the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM), the Congress and the BJP.

Earlier, on Sunday, the chief ministerial face of the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) and party candidate of Serchhip constituency, Lalduhoma, voiced confidence in the party forming a 'stable' government in the state.

He said the exit poll predictions, released on Thursday, were based on scientific methodology and were 'most reliable'.

"All the exit poll results point towards us. We do not need any other political party," he said.

Aizawl Deputy Commissioner Nazuk Kumar said on Sunday that all arrangements and preparations for the counting of votes in Mizoram on December 4 have been completed.

According to exit-poll projections, the two regional players--MNF and ZPM--are in the race to form government in Mizoram, with most predictions stating that the ruling party, led by Chief Minister Zoramthanga, has an advantage in the Northeast state, while there is also a possibility of a hung assembly.

The elections to the 40-member Mizoram assembly were held on November 7, with the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF) facing a stout challenge from the Zoram People's Movement (ZPM), Congress, and the BJP.

Following the deferment of the counting of votes for Mizoram, the state's Chief Electoral Officer Madhup Vyas said the Election Commission agreed to the request of social organisations and political parties as "Sunday was devoted to church duties and prayers".

Meanwhile, a day ahead of the counting of votes for the Mizoram Assembly Elections, Chief Minister Zoramthanga offered prayers at the Zarkawt Presbyterian Church.

The chief ministerial face of ZPM, Lalduhoma, also attended special prayers at a church in the Aizawl district on Sunday.