BJP State unit spokesman Bijon Mahajan said that the party workers are euphoric and the election results would go in favour of the BJP.
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The state poll results has bigger ramification as the heavy losses suffered by Congress will reduce its influence in Rajya Sabha, which in turn could help in the passage of crucial legislation like GST and Land Acquisition Bills.
In Tamil Nadu too, there are worries for the Congress and its partner Dravida Munnetra Kazhagham led by 93-year-old M Karunanidhi as they trail Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa’s All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazghagham which is ahead in 112 of the states’ 234 seats.
The India Today-Axis exit poll gave 88 to 101 seats to the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in the 140-member assembly and 38-48 to the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). They could have wiped out some of the anti-incumbency sentiment by removing Tarun Gogoi from the chief minister’s chair, analysts feel. As per the trends made available after counting of votes began in the state this morning, the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) and allies are leading in as amany as 66 seats. The BJP and “others” are projected to bag 4 seats in the state. The DMK-Congress’ alliance of opportunity has failed in the state. Some polls showed the BJP could also pick up seats in the states of West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, where regional parties dominate. Congress is projected to bag 27 (+/- 7) seats.
In state elections this week, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party is poised to score some important gains beyond its traditional strongholds into the south, east and northeast parts of India. The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam is leading in one seat.
The Election Commission has set up 80 counting centres for the counting of votes in the elections to the 140-member state assembly in Kerala.
The BJP may get a couple of seats, mostly from constituencies with a majority of non-Bengali speaking, trader community. These were unanimous about three states – and differed only on Tamil Nadu, where pollsters are split between those who believe that near-30-year pattern of AIADMK alternating in office with rival DMK would break this year and those who do not.
C-Voter, however, gave 139 seats to the AIADMK and 78 to the DMK coalition.
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The Congress, therefore, appears to be staring at an existential crisis as losing Assam and Kerala will leave it only with six states in its kitty. The Congress-led UDF would lose to LDF, surveys had said. The Left-Congress alliance has been predicted to get 110 seats against 103 it had won in the previous election. The Congress has also pooh-poohed exit poll predictions and claims that the BJP and its allies would not cross the magic figure of 63 in the House of 126.
