Crucial vote counting begins in five states

New Delhi: The votes cast by millions of people in the just-concluded assembly elections in five Indian states will be counted today with analysts saying the outcome is certain to impact the parliamentary polls less than six months from now.

As many as 66 per cent of the 98 million voters in Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram and Chhattisgarh exercised their franchise during staggered electoral process which began November 14 in Chhattisgarh and ended December 4 in Jaipur.

The counting begins at 8am and most results are expected by afternoon.

Mizoram exception

The elections in all states barring Mizoram involved straight contests, mainly between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the two major national parties that will vie to take power after the next general election.

While the Congress has ruled Delhi since 1998 and hopes to win a third five-year term, the BJP seems confident of retaining power in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh besides capturing the national capital.

The Mizoram fight was between the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF), formerly an insurgent group, and the Congress.

"These election results are quite important in the run up to the Lok Sabha elections as these states have a sizeable chunk of parliament seats," political analyst G.V.L. Narasimha Rao said.

"Whichever party (BJP or Congress) wins most or a majority of these assemblies will get a momentum for the Lok Sabha elections," he added.

Some people have even called this a 'semi-final' ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Balloting to pick a new legislature in troubled Jammu and Kashmir began November 17 and is still on. It will end December 24 and the vote count will take place four days later.

Barring Chhattisgarh, elections in the other four states took place under the shadow of the audacious terror attack in India's financial capital Mumbai, leaving 172 people dead, including 22 foreigners, and dealing a severe blow to the nation's psyche.

Political parties reported a sudden surge in voting percentage in urban areas in the wake of the Mumbai massacre.

BJP leaders say they are confident of retaining Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh but are feeling a bit shaky in Rajasthan. The BJP is also confident of unseating the Congress in Delhi.

Congress sources say their initial enthusiasm about retaining Delhi and pushing out the BJP from power in two of three other states appear to have been derailed by the Mumbai happenings.

Officially, however, both the Congress and the BJP are claiming they will be the winners in all the states.