Exit polls have predicted a close contest between India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the main opposition, Congress, in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, while in Rajasthan, Congress looks set to wrest power from BJP. Telangana is likely to repose its faith in the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samity (TRS) for one more term, while in Mizoram, ruling Congress is likely to face a tough challenge from the Mizo National Front (MNF). The counting of votes will begin early on Tuesday and most results are expected to be in by evening.
Assembly elections were held in Chhattisgarh on November 12 and 20, in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram on November 28 and in Rajasthan and Telangana polling was held today (Friday). Results of elections to these five states are being widely considered as a ‘semi-final’ of sorts before the world’s largest democracy goes to general elections in April-May next year – a bellwether for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s fortunes at the hustings in 2019 and also for that of Congress president Rahul Gandhi.
According to exit poll figures released today (Friday), Congress is set to storm back to power in Rajasthan with a resounding victory over the ruling BJP led by Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.
Congress may garner 112 seats, while BJP may have to be satisfied with 78. The majority mark for the 199-member Rajasthan assembly is 101 seats. In Madhya Pradesh, the fight was between Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and his Congress rivals comprising Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh.
Final tally
An average of the major exit polls showed Congress and ruling BJP quite evenly matched in the state, with BJP set to win 110 and Congress 108 seats in the 230-member state assembly, where the majority-mark is 116. In Chhattisgarh, though some exit polls showed that Congress held the edge, the final tally may not be enough for the party to secure a comfortable majority, but if exit poll figures ae anything to go by then BJP Chief Minister Raman Singh’s popularity in the state is set to take a blow.
Congress is likely to finish with 43 seats and BJP with 40 in the 90-seat Chhattisgarh assembly – thereby indicating that Congress may just fall short of the magic figure of 46.
In Telangana, most exit polls have predicted that Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao will buck the anti-incumbency factor and return to power, with his TRS set to win 66 seats – five more than what is required to secure a simple majority. The electoral alliance between Congress and Telugu Desam Party is unlikely to make much of an impact on the seats tally.
In Mizoram, ruling Congress could be in for a setback with most exit polls predicting the MNF winning 19 seats – still two short of majority – while Congress could finish with 16.