Exit poll results

POLLING in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and other states, besides Chandigarh, on June 1 brought to an end the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections. The Election Commission of India (ECI) deserves kudos for having conducted the long-drawn-out polls by and large smoothly. A glaring exception was West Bengal, which witnessed clashes between TMC and BJP supporters, especially in trouble-torn Sandeshkhali. Commendably, the ECI directed both the BJP and the Congress to tell their candidates and star campaigners to refrain from making statements that could aggravate communal discord. However, the poll panel stopped short of rapping the PM on the knuckles for his controversial speech in Banswara, Rajasthan, in April. It was a no-holds-barred campaign from both sides, with political leaders having no qualms about hitting their rivals below the belt. The heatwave sweeping many parts of the country made things tougher for all stakeholders, be it poll officials, candidates, campaigners or voters. However, despite the demanding conditions, the dance of democracy continued unabated.

Several exit polls have predicted a comfortable majority for the BJP-led NDA. Despite the below-par turnout, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed confidence that people have voted to re-elect the NDA government and rejected the ‘regressive politics’ of the ‘opportunistic’ INDIA. The PM chaired several meetings on Sunday, including one to review the 100-day agenda of the next government, thus sending out the message that his re-election is imminent.

Opposition parties have dismissed the predictions, saying that the election results would be entirely different. The Congress has said that the exit polls were a ‘deliberate attempt’ to justify the rigging of the elections and part of the ‘psychological games’ being played by the PM to lower the morale of INDIA bloc workers. The grand old party has accused the PM of employing pressure tactics to impress upon the bureaucracy that he is here to stay. The verdict will be out tomorrow.