Exit polls give Assam to BJP

Mamata to retain Bengal, Left victory in Kerala, split verdict forecast for Tamil du

New Delhi, May 16: Exit polls at the end of five-state elections on Monday evening predicted a Trimool sweep in West Bengal, a BJP win in Assam, a Left victory in Kerala but the verdict was split over Tamil du, with advantage to the DMK. The DMK was also tipped to win in Puducherry.

In the biggest popularity test since the Lok Sabha polls of 2014, the Bharatiya Jata Party (BJP) appeared poised to win in Assam for the first time, ending 15 long years of Congress rule.

BJP leaders had admitted even before the start of the staggered elections last month that the party's best chances lay in Assam.

The BJP-led alliance could bag 79 to 93 seats in the 126-member Assam assembly, three exit polls said. A fourth survey gave the BJP and its two allies - Asom Ga Parishad (AGP) and Bodoland People's Front (BPF) - 57 seats, close to the critical half-way mark.

The India Today-Axis exit poll gave 79-93 seats to the BJP combine, 26-33 to the Congress and 6-10 to the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF).

ABP-Nielsen predicted 81 seats to the BJP coalition, 33 to the Congress and 10 to the AIUDF.

The NewsX Chakya poll gave 90 seats to the BJP combine, 27 to the Congress and nine to the AIUDF. According to TimesNow C-Voter exit poll, the BJP and allies would get 57 seats, the Congress 41, AIUDF 18 and others 10.

In West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was set to retain power with a slightly reduced majority.

According to ABP-Nielsen, the Trimool would win 163 of the 294 assembly seats. The CPI-M-led Left Front and the Congress combine would get 126 with a solitary seat going to the BJP. Others would get four seats.

But it warned that in 25 constituencies the margin of victory was set to be less than five percent, and the fil outcome could drastically change depending on the results in these seats.

C-Voter also predicted a whopping 167 seats for the Trimool, 75 for the Left, 45 for the Congress, four to the BJP and three to others.

The exit polls were divided over Tamil du.

Two surveys predicted a defeat for Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa's AIADMK. But a third said she would retain power comfortably, winning 139 of the 234 seats.

The News tion TV exit poll gave 95-99 seats to the AIADMK and 114-118 to the DMK-Congress alliance. The People Welfare Front (PWF), made up of six parties, could get 14 seats and the BJP four seats. Nine seats could go to others.

The Axis-My India exit poll predicted 124-140 seats to the DMK-Congress alliance, 89-110 to the AIADMK, 0-3 to the BJP and 4-8 to others. C-Voter, however, gave 139 seats to the AIADMK and 78 to the DMK coalition.

In Kerala, however, the Left could return to power.

The India Today-Axis exit poll gave 88 to 101 seats to the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in the 140-member house and 38-48 to the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). The BJP could get zero to three seats while one to four seats may go to others.

The India TV C-Voter exit poll predicted 74-82 seats to the LDF, which is led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).

Exit polls predicted a win for the DMK-Congress alliance in Puducherry too, ousting the ruling All India NR Congress.

PREDICTIONS

Agency    INC    BJP    AIUDF    Others

India Today-Axis    26-33    79-93    6-10    1-4

ABP-Nielsen    33    81    10    2

Times Now-C Voter    41    57    18    10

NewsX-Chakya    27    90    9    -

India TV    37-45    53-61    14-22    6-14