BJP poised to sweep Gujarat, has edge over Cong in Himachal: Exit polls

NEW DELHI: The BJP is poised to sweep Gujarat yet again and has an edge over the Congress in a tough fight in Himachal Pradesh, exit polls predicted on Monday.

The exit polls predicted that the BJP is on course to a handsome victory in Gujarat and could create a record in terms of the number of seats won. They also predicted that the Aam Admi Party (AAP) will open its account in the Gujarat Assembly and will finish third behind the Congress and BJP.

While most exit polls predicted that BJP is likely to retain Himachal Pradesh, one exit poll predicted Congress to be in the lead in the sweepstakes to form the government in the hill state which has seen power rotate between the BJP and Congress for several decades.

The exit poll results came out after the conclusion of the second phase of polling in Gujarat on Monday. The first phase of polling in Gujarat was held on December 1 and results for the two states will be declared on December 8.

The polls also gave the AAP a sweep the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) polls . The results of the MCD polls will be declared on December 7.

According to the India Today-Axis My India opinion poll, the BJP is set to create a record in terms of its electoral performance in Gujarat. It also predicted AAP making sizeable inroads in terms of vote share. The exit poll predicted that BJP will win 129-151 seats, Congress 16-30 seats and AAP 9-21 seats in Gujarat. The poll predicted BJP getting 46 per cent votes, Congress 26 per cent and AAP 20 per cent.

According to Republic-PMARQ exit polls, the BJP is poised to get between 128 and 148 seats with 48.2 per cent vote share. Gujarat is a BJP stronghold and the party is seeking a seventh successive term in office in the state which has 182 Assembly seats. The poll gave Congress 30-42 seats with 32.6 per cent vote share, AAP 2-10 seats with 15.4 per cent vote share and Others getting 0-3 seats with 3.8 per cent votes.

The Times Now-ETG poll gave the BJP 135-145 seats in Gujarat, Congress 24-34, and AAP 6 to 16. The TV 9 Gujarati gave 125-130 seats to BJP, 40-50 seats to Congress, 3-5 seats to AAP and 3-7 seats to others. News X-Jan ki Baat exit poll gave 117-140 seats to BJP, 34-51 seats to Congress, 6-13 seats to AAP and 1-2 seats to Others.

In Himachal Pradesh, which has a 68-member Assembly and went to the polls on November 12, the Republic-PMARQ exit poll gave 34-49 seats to BJP, with a vote share of 44.8 per cent. It predicted that Congress will get 28-33 seats with a vote share of 42.9 per cent. The AAP is predicted to get 0-1 seat in the state with 2.8 per cent vote share, the exit poll said.

India Today-Axis poll predicted that Congress is ahead and will get 30-40 seats in the hill state, the BJP 24-34 and AAP four to eight seats. The poll predicted 44 per cent vote share for Congress, 42 per cent for BJP, 2 per cent for AAP and 12 per cent for Others.

The India TV-Matrize poll gave 35-40 seats to the BJP and 26-31 to Congress. The poll predicted that AAP will not be able to open its account while others will get 0-3 seats. The NewsX-Jan ki Baat poll predicted 32-40 polls for BJP, 27-34 for Congress, none for AAP and 1-2 for others.

The Times Now-ETG poll predicted 34-42 seats for BJP, 24-32 for Congress, none for AAP and Others getting 1-3 seats. The Zee News-BARC poll predicted 35-40 seats for BJP, 20-25 for Congress, 0-3 for AAP and 1-5 for Others in the hill state.

For the Delhi MCD polls held on Sunday, Aaj Tak-My Axis India poll predicted AAP getting 149-171 seats, BJP 69-91, Congress 3-7 and Others 5-9. The NewsX-Jan ki Baat gave AAP 159-175 seats out of 250, BJP 70-92 seats, Congress 4-7 seats and others one seat. The Times Now-ETG poll gave 146-156 seats to AAP, 84-94 seats to BJP, 6-10 seats for Congress and 0-4 seats to Others.

The BJP has ruled the MCD for three successive terms. The exit polls showed that Congress has failed to revive itself in the national capital. (ANI)