Narendra Modi is set to secure a historic third term as the Prime Minister of India as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) under his leadership is set to win a massive mandate in 2024 Lok Sabha elections, according to the News 18 exit poll.
The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is expected to win 355-370 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, according to the exit poll.
On the other hand, the Opposition bloc INDIA is expected to come a distant second with 125-140 seats.
The Lok Sabha elections concluded on Saturday after six weeks of campaign and polling spread across seven phases — the last of which was held on Saturday. The exit polls were released after the embargo imposed by the Election Commission of India (ECI) was lifted at 6 pm as the voting concluded.
Earlier in the day, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge had projected that the INDI Alliance will win at least 295 seats. The exit polls, however, paint a completely different picture.
BJP set to improve its tally
Despite the challenge from a united Opposition under the INDIA bloc, the BJP is set to improve its tally and is expected to win 305-315 seats, according to the News 18 exit poll.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had won 303 seats, which was an improvement from 282 in 2014 elections.
On the other hands, the principal Opposition party Congress is yet again expected to be limited to double digits. It is expected to win 62-72 seats.
The exit poll shows that INDI Alliance is expected to get 125-140 seats. This is a far cry from 295 seats that Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said the bloc would win.
BJP set to retain North, make inroads in South
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is set to retain North India and is also slated to make inroads in South India, according to News 18 exit poll.
In Uttar Pradesh, from where Modi is also contesting for the third time, the BJP is expected to win 64-67 of the 80 seats. The INDIA bloc is expected to win 9-12 seats.
In Madhya Pradesh, the BJP is expected to win 26-29 seats in the state and INDIA bloc is expected to score zero to three seats.
A similar clean sweep is also expected on all 26 seats of Modi’s home state of Gujarat. In the Himalayan states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the BJP is expected to have a clean sweep as well.
In Rajasthan too, the BJP is expected to win 18-23 seats out of the state’s 25 seats. The INDIA bloc is expected to win two to seven seats.
In Bihar, the BJP is expected to win 13-16 of the state’s 40 seats. The BJP’s NDA partners are expected to win another 18 seats. The INDI Alliance is expected to win six to nine seats.
In the national capital Delhi, the BJP is expected to win five to seven out of the seven seats.
In Haryana, the BJP is expected to win five to seven of the state’s total 10 seats. The INDI Alliance is expected to win three to five seats.
In Punjab, the BJP is expected to win two to four seats whereas the INDI Alliance is expected to win 8-10 of the state’s 13 seats.
The most interesting, however, are the projections for the South where the BJP has until now had a minimal presence except for in Karnataka.
In Kerala, the bastion of the Left, and Lakshwadeep, the BJP could win one to three seats for the first time. Similarly, the BJP is expected to win one to three seats in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
In Telangana, where Congress rode to power not long ago, the BJP is expected to win 7-10 seats out of the state’s total 17 seats.
In Andhra Pradesh, the BJP is expected to win four to six seats out of the state’s 25 seats. The NDA partners Jana Sena and Telugu Tesam Party (TDP) are expected to win another 15-16 seats.
In Karnataka, the BJP is expected to nearly repeat the previous election results as it is projected to win 21-24 of the state’s 28 Lok Sabha seats as opposed to three to seven of the INDIA bloc.
Will BJP change the game in West Bengal?
Even as the BJP is set to score critical first victories in the South, the projections for West Bengal are no less far-reaching in their importance.
The News 18 exit poll says that the BJP is expected to win 21-24 of the state’s total 42 seats.
Meanwhile, the state’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) is expected to win 18-21 seats.
As TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has emerged as one of the fiercest critics of Modi and the BJP, a BJP’s victory in her home turf would be a major setback to her and that too at a time when observers have pointed at her harbouring national ambitions.
Elsewhere in the Eastern India, the BJP-led NDA is expected to win 11-13 of Assam’s 14 seats whereas INDI Alliance is expected to win two to five seats.
In the rest of the northeast India along with the union territories, the NDA is expected to win 13 of the 15 seats.
In Jharkhand, the BJP is expected to win 9-12 of the state’s 14 seats whereas the INDI Alliance is expected to win two to five seats.
In Odisha, the BJP is expected to win 13 to 15 of the state’s 21 seats. The state’s ruling BJD is expected to win six to eight seats.
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