Exit polls deeply unscientific, says Congress leader Shashi Tharoor

Shashi Tharoor

After major exit polls predicted a third straight win for the Bharatiya Janata Party including a huge gain in the south, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor termed the predictions "deeply unscientific" and said they are instead interested in the votes of people.

The Congress leader added that BJP won't be making gains in Kerala and Tamil Nadu and will lose "significantly" in Karnataka.

Speaking to the media, Tharoor reportedly  said, "We have been travelling throughout the country campaigning and have a sense of what is the reality on the ground. Exit polls are deeply unscientific. Last year, the majority of exit polls got the results wrong in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. What we are interested in is the real poll- the votes of the public is going to decide our political future."

He is also the Congress party's candidate from Thiruvananthapuram. He is pitted against BJP candidate and Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar. The voting on the seat took place on April 26. The exit polls have predicted a third term for the BJP-led NDA government in the Lok Sabha elections.In a major takeaway, the BJP is expected to make significant inroads in the southern states.

The News 18 exit poll predicted 1-3 seats for NDA in Kerala. It said UDF is expected to win 15-18 seats and LDF 2-5 seats. The Times Now-ETG has predicted one seat for the BJP in Kerala. It said Congress-led UDF and CPI(M)-led LDF are expected to win 14-15 and four seats respectively.