NEW DELHI: A third term for Prime Minister Narendra Modi appears certain as the NDA hovered close to 300 at 3 pm. But the day belongs to the resurgent Opposition, which performed way over the modest expectations raised by exit polls.
The big surprise comes from the heartland state of Uttar Pradesh, which the BJP had swept in 2014 and held most of its ground in 2019. This time most exit polls had predicted an edge for the party. Around 3 pm, the INDIA bloc — comprising Samajwadi Party and the Congress in the state — holds a strong lead over NDA.
Among other battleground states, the BJP is trailing in West Bengal — sliding from even its score of 18 seats in 2019 — Maharashtra and Haryana, and is yet to open account in Punjab.
The BJP’s losses, as expected, are being offset from Odisha, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and to an extent, Telangana.
Indian stock markets crashed by over 4,000 points today, after a sharp rally in the previous session, as early election results showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance leading in more than 272 seats, but the extent of the victory was not clear and its lead narrower than what exit polls had predicted.
The BSE Sensex was down 6.71 per cent or 5,602 points at 71,002, while the NSE Nifty 50 was down 6.89 per cent or 1,634 points at 12.15 am. This is the biggest single-day fall in Indian markets since the onset of the Covid pandemic.
In Maharashtra, OGs Uddhav Thackeray, Sharad Pawar Stand Tall. Maharashtra is among the states where the NDA has taken a big dent as compared to 2019
Their parties were split, symbols taken, names changed, but Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and Sharadchandra Pawar have proven that they lead the real Shiv Sena and the real Nationalist Congress Party.
Six hours into the counting of votes for the Lok Sabha polls, Team Thackeray is leading on 11 Maharashtra seats and Mr Pawar’s NCP on 7. Their breakaway factions — Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP — are leading on 5 and 1 seats, respectively. Overall, INDIA is ahead in 29 seats and the BJP on 18 at 2 pm.
Voting was held for 543 Lok Sabha seats over seven phases, which ended on Saturday. The majority mark is 272.
The counting of votes for assembly elections in two states, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, is also taking place today. In Andhra Pradesh, the Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP is leading three hours into counting. In Odisha, BJP has taken a lead over the ruling BJD.
The campaign has been intense and drawn out, and the mood of the voters difficult to read in this election. Three exit polls have predicted a 400-plus score for the BJP-led NDA. The rest differ only in the margin of the NDA victory — conclusions the Opposition has trashed. Exit polls have always had mixed success in the country.
As with every election, the BJP unleashed its formidable election machinery early, and launched a star-studded campaign that focussed on development, economy and a vision for the 100-year anniversary of Independence. Backing it up were the promises met — the scrapping of Article 370 and the construction of the Ayodhya Ram temple.
The big difference was the Opposition’s offensive against the ruling coalition, a long way from the lack of cohesiveness of 2019. While the beginning was shaky and in parts, patchy — like the Congress versus Trinamool contest in Bengal and Congress versus AAP in Punjab — the narrative on a change in constitution and scrapping of reservation made an impact.
Compared to 2019, the line-ups of the two sides have also changed, Maharashtra being the epicentre of the shake-up. NDA ally Shiv Sena walked out of the alliance and joined the Opposition ranks, splitting a few years later. Maharashtra powerhouse Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), split too and the Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar factions became part of the NDA.
The election is being held in the shadow of allegations about the Central investigative agencies being used to target key leaders of the Opposition. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, arrested in the liquor policy case and out to campaign on interim bail, returned to jail yesterday.
