246. Sirpur

Indian National Congress held the seat; the winning margin narrowed from 21.6% to 12.3%.

Boundaries were redrawn between 1972 and 1978 — the comparison is matched by name and is indicative only.

• Won on a lower shareIts own vote share fell 19.4% — it held because the rest of the vote was more divided.
• New challengerJanata Party (JNP) finished second with 26.1% — it did not contest here in 1972.
• Vote fragmentedThe top two took only 64.6% between them, down from 94.0% — the field split more ways.

Written from the constituency figures by a fixed set of rules — no language model.