Exit polls predict win for Modi's opponents in state elections

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party is trailing in two recent state elections, exit polls showed, providing a boost to the opposition after a weaker mandate for the ruling alliance in national elections.

The Indian National Congress is predicted to win in the northern state of Haryana, and its alliance has an edge over the BJP in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, where none of the parties are seen securing a clear majority.

While the exit polls aren’t definitive, a win for the opposition will allow them to solidify their position ahead of elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand later this year. Official results are scheduled to be released on Oct. 8.

Haryana is the first state from the Hindi-speaking belt of the country, where the BJP traditionally holds sway, to go to the polls since the party’s shock national election result in June. Jammu and Kashmir, which was stripped off its statehood in 2019, has been under the federal rule since then. A possible poor showing for Modi’s party may signal voters’ discontentment over their loss of autonomy.

Haryana

The agrarian state has 90 seats up for grabs with around 20 million people registered to cast their ballot. The main contest is between the BJP and the Congress party and the support of farmers, women and people belonging to socially and economically backward classes is crucial.

Jammu and Kashmir

The exit polls mostly indicate that all of the current party alliances could be struggling to cross the majority mark of 46 seats to form a government. The alliance between Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi and J&KNC’s leader and former chief minister Omar Abdullah may have paid off into pushing back the BJP in the region.