Exit polls predict Congress defeating incumbent BJP government in Haryana

Congress is expected to defeat the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Haryana and is tipped to win around 60 seats in the 90-seat Assembly where the majority mark is 46, according to various exit poll results.

Most exit polls rule out Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) winning even a single seat in Haryana. The Congress is projected to win 50-58 seats, while the BJP is expected to win 20-28 seats, as per the C-Voter. The exit poll gives 0-2 seats for the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) and none for the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). It predicts others to win 10-14 seats.

According to an exit poll survey by Peoples Pulse, the Congress is predicted to win 49 seats, and the BJP 24 seats. It has predicted one seat for JJP and none for INLD and AAP. The survey shows others winning 16 seats.

The Congress will form the government in Haryana with at least 56 seats, while the BJP will win 31, according to P-Marq exit polls. It predicts zero seats for JJP, INLD, and AAP while giving three seats to others.

The Dainik Bhaskar exit poll predicted 44-54 seats for the Congress and 19-29 seats for the BJP. The survey expects 0-1 seat for JJP and 1-5 seats for INLD+. According to the exit poll, the AAP may win just one seat in Haryana.

According to the exit conducted by DHRUV in Haryana, the Congress is expected to win 57 seats in the state, while the BJP is tipped to win 27.

It has predicted zero seats for JJP, INLD, and AAP. The survey predicts six seats for others.

Similarly, Matrize predicts 55-62 seats for the Congress and 18-24 seats for the BJP. It has predicted 0-3 seats for JJP, 3-6 seats for INLD, and 2-5 for others. The Matrize survey has predicted zero seats for the AAP in Haryana.

Bhupinder Singh Hooda to be Haryana CM?

Commenting on the exit poll results, senior Congress leader and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said the people of Haryana have decided to bring the grand old party to power.

“People have made up their minds to bring the Congress to power because the BJP has not done anything for Haryana. There was no law and order in Haryana under the BJP. Sometimes, exit polls are right and sometimes they are wrong… but Congress is going to form the government,” Hooda was quoted as saying.

Asked if he expects to become the Haryana Chief Minister if the exit polls are proven right, Hooda said, “MLAs will be elected and whatever decision the high command takes will be acceptable to all… Kumari Selja is our senior leader. Why doesn’t she have the right to become the Chief Minister.”

Wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who joined the Congress recently, was quoted as saying, “This is a moment of happiness for the people of Haryana.

This is the result of the atrocities people have had to face in the last 10 years. I would like to congratulate the Congress for this brilliant performance.” Meanwhile, BJP leader and sitting chief minister Nayab Singh Saini said the party will return to power irrespective of what the exit polls predict.

“We will win with huge numbers. We have worked for every sector… On Oct 8, the BJP will win with a huge mandate,” Saini was quoted as saying.

Haryana – where soldiers, wrestlers, and farmers dominate the electorates– is the first state to go to the polls after Lok Sabha elections in which both Congress and the BJP won five seats each in the state.

With over two crore people eligible to vote, the Haryana polls decide the fate of Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, senior Congress leaders Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Vinesh Phogat, besides the JJP’s Dushyant Chautala and over 1,000 other candidates.

The ruling BJP is eyeing a hat-trick of Assembly election wins in the state, while the Congress is hoping to return to power after a decade. The counting of votes for the Haryana Assembly elections will take place on Oct 8, along with the counting for Jammu and Kashmir polls.

At least 1,031 candidates contested the Haryana election, including 101 women and 464 Independent nominees. Besides the BJP and the Congress, the key contesting parties are the AAP and the INLD-Bhujan Samaj Party, and the JJP-Azad Samaj party alliances.

Significant election issues in Haryana

Inflation, the Agnipath military recruitment scheme and the state’s growing unemployment, law and order, and resentment among employees, who are unhappy with the existing National Pension System are among the major poll planks of the Congress party.

In its Haryana election manifesto, Congress promised to revert to the old pension scheme and Rs 2,000 monthly payment to women, besides promising to raise the monthly social security pension of old-age people, handicapped, and widows to Rs 6,000. It also promised to provide cooking gas cylinders at Rs 500 each and give 300 units of free electricity every month to each household.

In its poll campaign, the ruling BJP extensively promoted its “non-stop Haryana” vision and highlighted the advantages of a double-engine government, while targeting the Congress for anti-reservation sentiments and dynastic politics. The BJP has made 20 promises, and interestingly, five coincide with those in the Congress’s ‘7 Guarantees’.