Exit polls show BJP win in UP, U'khand, Goa; Cong-AAP fight in Punjab
New Delhi: A saffron surge looks likely in Uttar Pradesh, with two out of four exit polls showing a near-majority for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Assembly elections, and Today's Chanakya predicting an over two-thirds majority on Thursday
Only two polls showed a neck-to-neck fight between BJP and the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance.
The Times Now-VMR poll gave BJP the maximum seats, between 190-200, while consigning the SP-Congress combine to a mere 110-130 seats, and the BSP to a poor third at 57-74.
Similarly, India News predicts 185 seats for BJP in UP, 120 for Congress-SP combine and 80 for Mayawati.
However, ABP News shows a tough fight between BJP and SP-Congress, with the two winning 169 and 161 seats respectively.
The India TV-C Voter poll also showed BJP just ahead at 155-167 seats, while the SP-Congress alliance was placed second at 135-147. BSP was third in this poll as well, with 83 to 95 seats in its kitty.
Today's Chanakya, which so accurately predicted the 2014 general elections as a massive win for the BJP, came up with another prediction of a resounding BJP victory - 267 to 303 seats.
The majority mark in UP is 202 seats.
In Uttarakhand, where Congress is in power, the BJP looks set to sweep to a majority. India Today- Axis survey has predicted that the BJP would win 46 to 53 of the 70 Assembly seats, with the Congress at a distant second of 12-21. Chanakya also predicts a BJP win with 40 to 46 seats. However, Congress is said to be getting 31-37 seats as per this poll.
India News survey too, shows BJP getting 38 seats in the state. Only the India TV-C Voter survey claims that Uttarakhand would see a hung Assembly with both parties winning 32 seats each.
The BJP is set to lose seats in Goa, but not enough to be unable to form a government again. India TV-C Voter and India News both predict 15 to 21 seats for BJP in Goa (it held 21 seats after the 2012 polls), and 12-18 for the Congress. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), a new entrant, will get a maximum of 4 seats. There are 40 seats in the Goa Assembly, with 21 needed for a majority.
Punjab, which the AAP has targeted for its next big win after Delhi, is set to see a close contest. Contrary to some expectations, the AAP may not get a majority in the state. However, all exit polls predict that the BJP-SAD alliance, which is in power, is set to lose big time. India Today, India News, India TV-C Voter and Chanakya all predict a single digit score for BJP-SAD in UP.
But the exit polls are divided on whether Congress or AAP would be the single largest party. India Today-Axis poll predicts a Congress win at 62 to 71 seats, placing AAP a poor second at 42-51 seats. India TV-C Voter survey, on the other hand, predicts that AAP is certain to gain a majority of the 117 seats in Punjab (59-67) with Congress coming second with 41 to 49 seats. India News exit poll seems to be predicting dead heat, with AAP and Congress both winning 55 seats each.
In Manipur, where repolling in some constituencies ended only today, India TV-C Voter exit poll predicted 25-31 seats for the BJP, and 17-23 seats for the ruling Congress. However, the India Today-Axis poll painted a different picture, giving the Congress a majority in the 60-member Assembly with 30-36 seats.
