India state election results present test for Modi

The ballot in the northern state represents the most important electoral test that Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has faced since winning the 2014 general election.

India Today-Axis exit poll predicted 62-71 seats for the Congress in 117-member Punjab assembly, a comfortable majority, and 42-51 to Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP.

Jury is still out on the actual performance of the saffron party.

The exit polls on Thursday did not give any clear indication about who would take the maximum number of seats. The SP managed only 5 seats with a vote share of 22.2 per cent, the Congress and Apna Dal got 2 seats each while Mayawati was left high and dry. The average figure, or the poll of polls, worked out to be 197 seats for the BJP.

Counting of votes in all the five states will be taken up on March 11 and all the results are expected by late evening that day. Congress, on the other hand, may get 10-15 seats while AAP may get restricted to only four seats despite a forceful campaign. During the race, Modi touted his accomplishments as chief minister of Gujarat, one of India’s fastest-growing states, to establish his image as a capable, experienced leader. Most exit polls had predicted the ruling BJP party to come in in at around 200 seats.

– The BJP has been out of power in UP for 14 years. As for Congress, Amarinder Singh claimed it would win 65 seats and the AAP exuded confidence of bagging close to 100. What was the reason that he allied with the Congress despite his party enjoying a majority in the state assembly. Even though this represents a big gain from 2012, when it won a mere 47 seats, the BJP will still fall 16 seats short of a majority.

When do Exit Polls for UP, Punjab, Goa, Manipur, Uttarakhand start? At stake for Modi is his economic program and his ability to push hard legislation such as land and labor reforms through the parliament.

The Uttar Pradesh legislative assembly has 403 seats, including 84 reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC) and two for Scheduled Tribes.

“Although we are confident of our victory, the party is careful to prevent chances of any mistake”, a BJP insider told ET.

Uttar Pradesh gets very exciting.

The multi-phase elections, which began in February, ended on Wednesday after which exit polls – that have proved unreliable in the past – were allowed to be published.