Last Phase of WB Election: TMC to retain power, BJP to gain big

Mamata Banerjee is set to retain power in West Bengal with her Trinamool Congress winning 156 of the state's 294 seats, predicted NDTV's poll of exit polls as the marathon eight-phase state assembly elections ended yesterday. 

An aggregate of six exit polls predicts that Mamata Banerjee will make it past the half-way mark, enough to win a third straight term. The Bharatiya Janata Party are predicted to win 121 seats.

According to ABP C-Voter exit poll, TMC is predicted to win 152-64 seats, while BJP is given 109-21 seats.

However, Republic TV-CNX poll has predicted that the BJP will get 143 seats in Bengal while the Trinamool Congress will secure 133 seats.

Earlier yesterday, millions voted in the final phase of polling in West Bengal, despite a record-breaking spike in Covid-19 infections and deaths that has devastated the country.

Long queues of voters appeared outside polling booths as temperatures soared.

Many in rural parts of the state failed to observe social distancing rules, with some wearing masks but others hanging them loosely on their chins or from their ears.

Stray incidents of violence were reported from several areas but the overall polling process has been peaceful with 76.07% voter turnout recorded till 5 pm. Nearly 8.5 million people were eligible to vote in the eighth phase of polling in the state.

Winning power in the state of 90 million would be a major victory for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist BJP, which is seeking to end a decade of rule by the state's firebrand leader Mamata Banerjee.

"In line with the Covid-19 protocols, I call upon people to cast their vote and enrich the festival of democracy," Modi tweeted yesterday.

Packed election rallies attended by mostly maskless crowds including in the restive eastern state, along with huge religious festivals, have been blamed for India's surge in cases over the past few weeks.

Before and since voting kicked off in late March, the Indian leader, along with Mamata and other minor parties, held numerous rallies before cutting back as virus cases grew.

In Assam, the Congress is up for disappointment, the NDTV exit polls suggested, with the BJP expected to retain power by winning 76 of 126 seats. The Congress, which campaigned aggressively to win back its former bastion, is likely to win 49 seats, said the polls.

In Kerala, the incumbent Left-led LDF front is likely to win 76 of 140 seats - ahead of the half-way mark - but the Congress-led UDF is close behind with 62 seats, the polls said. The BJP is set to make its presence felt with two seats, the poll of polls predicted.

For Tamil Nadu, the polls predicted a sweep for the opposition DMK and its allies -- 171 of 234 seats. The ruling AIADMK, which is the BJP's ally, is given 58 seats in its first state election since the death of its charismatic and powerful leader J Jayalalithaa in 2016.

Elections in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry were held from March 27. The results will be announced on May 2.