HIGHLIGHTS
- After Opposition’s dismissal of exit polls, the writing seems to be on the wall
- BJP looks set to win majority alone, NDA soars above 300-mark
- Modi’s alliance jumped into commanding lead soon after counting began
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s NDA government has been picked to lead India again by many of the hundreds of millions who voted in the hotly contested, six-week long Lok Sabha election, trends emerging from vote counts show.
If the current numbers hold, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will win a parliamentary majority on its own in a 543-strong Lok Sabha with two nominated members — just as it did in 2014.
None of the 542 races have been called, but the writing appears to be on the wall for Opposition leaders who dismissed exit poll data predicting such an emphatic victory for the incumbent.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe of Sri Lanka has already congratulated Modi. Omar Abdullah, a former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, who acknowledged this weekend that all exit polls couldn’t be wrong, congratulated the BJP’s leaders in a sporting message on Twitter.
So the exit polls were correct. All that’s left is to congratulate the BJP & NDA for a stellar performance. Credit where credit is due PM Modi Sahib & Mr Amit Shah put together a winning alliance & a very professional campaign. Bring on the next five years.16.7K5:00 AM – May 23, 2019Twitter Ads info and privacy4,168 people are talking about this
A number of exit polls broadcast on May 19 — the seventh and final day of voting — had the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by the BJP, retaining power with well over 300 seats.
That is how things currently stand — the exact number is a few short of 350.
For the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), the Congress-led grouping vanquished so emphatically in 2014, the exit poll data painted a dreary picture: if the predictions are confirmed, as it now seems they will, the UPA will struggle to find even 150 wins.
Current trends have the UPA hovering well below the 100-seat mark.
‘GRAND ALLIANCE’ FLOPS IN BIGGEST STATE
The three-way contest in Uttar Pradesh — home to the highest number of parliamentary seats in any Indian state: 80 — is of particular interest.
Trends appear to show that a regional coalition of three parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, have failed to challenge the NDA, which won all but seven seats here in the 2014 election.
Now, the NDA looks headed for victory in over 50 seats — a smaller seat share, but a significant one nonetheless.
The Congress is also in the fray in Uttar Pradesh, but is not part of the tripartite “mahagathbandhan”.
Campaigning for the Lok Sabha election was often acrimonious — politicians got personal at times while targeting their rivals. The Election Commission found itself under constant scrutiny; it drew the opposition’s criticism for a number of issues, including one election commissioner’s dissent against clean chits given to speeches made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah.
Besides the results of the Lok Sabha election, we will also know the outcome of a number of state elections and bypolls today.WATCH | The turning points of Lok Sabha election 2019
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