News18-IPSOS Exit Poll predicts big win for BJP in Maharashtra, Haryana

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears set to retain power with a bigger mandate in Maharashtra, where it is in an alliance with the Shiv Sena, as well as in Haryana.

Exit polls have predicted a big win for BJP in the two states that went to polls on October 21. The exit polls also forecast a rout for BJP’s rivals, including the Congress.

Exit polls, broadcast soon after polling for the Maharashtra and Haryana Assembly polls was concluded on October 21, varied in their projection of seats for the rival alliances. However, they predicted a big win with more than two-thirds seats for the BJP-led ‘Maha-Yuti’ in both states.

News18-IPSOS exit poll forecast

The exit poll by News18-IPSOS gave BJP a near-majority on its own by predicting a whopping 142 seats for the saffron party and 102 for its ally Shiv Sena.

The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) would bag 17 and 22 seats respectively, it predicted.

The News18-IPSOS poll has predicted that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray are likely to win Nagpur South West and Worli Assembly constituencies, respectively.

Among the biggest names that may lose are former chief ministers Ashok Chavan and Prithviraj Chavan, the survey predicts. In Baramati, the bastion of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, the battle may go down to the wire between his nephew Ajit Pawar and BJP's Gopichand Kundlik Padalkar.

In Haryana, the News18-IPSOS poll projected 75 and 10 seats for BJP and Congress, respectively.

However, wrestlers Yogeshwar Dutt and Babita Phogat who took the political plunge and fought on BJP tickets in Baroda and Dadri may end up on the losing side.

Also watch: Exit polls predict big win for BJP in Maharashtra, Haryana

In 2014, the BJP and the Sena had won 122 seats and 63 seats respectively in Maharashtra, followed by 42 and 41 seats by the Congress and the NCP. All four parties had contested the polls independently.

In Haryana, the BJP had won 47 seats, followed by the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD)'s 19 and 15 of the Congress.

Here’s a look at some of the other exit polls:

The India Today-Axis My India exit poll projected 166-194 seats for the BJP-Shiv Sena in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly and 72-90 for the Congress-NCP alliance.

The ABP-CVoter predicted 210 seats for the BJP-Shiv Sena and 63 for the Congress-NCP, while the corresponding figures by Times Now were 230 and 48. In Haryana, the BJP win was predicted to be even more dominant.

The ABP-CVoter forecast 70 and eight seats for the BJP and the Congress respectively in the 90-member House.

The Times Now survey gave the BJP and the Congress 71 and 11 seats respectively.

The BJP had brought the issue of nullification of Article 370 of the Constitution and national security at the heart of its campaign, with development works of its state governments playing the second fiddle.

Counting of votes will happen on October 24.

(With inputs from PTI)

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