Exit polls give India to Modi

The differences are so huge that while the old warhorse ORG-India has predicted that the NDA would fall well short of the majority mark of 272 stopping at 249, the newbie Today’s Chanakya, which has built a reputation during the last few polls by predicting correctly, has said Narendra Modi-led NDA would surpass all expectation and end up with a humongous figure of 340 seats. The other major agencies AC-Nielsen, CSDS and Cicero have also predicted majority for the NDA predicting figures around the 272 mark.

According to the polls, while the BJP has been able to surge ahead in most of the states where it has a presence, its efforts to intervene in new areas like West Bengal and Tamil Nadu has been effectively countered by the feisty fights put by Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress in West Bengal and J Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK in Tamil Nadu. 

Both the woman chief ministers have managed to retain their popularity among the voters. The other non-BJP chief minister managing to retain his charisma is Naveen Patnaik in Odisha, where his party the BJD is predicted to emerge as the largest party. However, the results may not be that good for another prominent Modi-adversary – Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, whose party is predicted to lose badly.

Another important feature of the polls is the performance of the new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). While Arvind Kejriwal’s outfit is predicted to lose its support base in the national capital, it is also predicted to break new grounds especially in Punjab, where there is unanimity among many agencies that it could win two seats. Facing rout, the Congress refused to comment on the predictions made by the opinion polls as its leadership went into a huddle to discuss further course of action.