Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) and Jan Suraaj leader Prashant Kishor.
Credit: PTI Photos
New Delhi: Nitish Kumar-led NDA is likely to return to power in Bihar with a comfortable majority even as the Opposition I.N.D.I.A. may have to contend with less than 100 seats, exit polls predicted on Tuesday, as the two-phased elections concluded.
Prashant Kishor-led Jan Suraaj Party's electoral campaign may fizzle out in this edition as not a single of the nearly dozen exit polls predicted double digit figures for it. Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM also may not perform better than 2020 polls.
With 122 being the majority mark in a house of 243 members, all 12 exit polls analysed by DH predicted a comfortable win for the JD(U)-led NDA. The ruling coalition is expected to win a minimum of 130 seats and a maximum of 209. The I.N.D.I.A. bloc is predicted to win 32 to 108 votes.
The Bihar polls were conducted in two phases on November 6 and 11, and the counting of votes will be on November 14.
The poll by Praja Poll Analytics gave the maximum of 184-209 seats for NDA while restricting I.N.DI.A bloc to 32-49 seats and others 1-5.
While Dainik Bhaskar predicted 145-160 seats for the NDA, 73-91 for the Mahagathbandhan and 3 for the Jan Suraaj, the Matrize Exit Poll forecast the NDA likely getting get between 147-167 seats, the Mahagathbandhan 70-90, and the Jan Suraaj between 0-2 seats.
The People's Insight predicted 133-148 seats for the NDA, 87-102 for the Mahagathbandhan and 0-2 for Jan Suraaj.
The People's Pulse gave 133-159 seats to the NDA, 75-101 for the Mahagathbandhan and 0-5 for Prashant Kishore's party.
The News I8 gave 140 - 150 to NDA while 85-95 to Mahagathbandhan.
The poll survey agencies make exit poll projections based on interviews of voters as they come out after casting their votes. However these may vary widely from the actual results.
With the most of the survey predicted the NDA, comprising the BJP, JD(U) and LJP (Ram Vilas) returning to power in Bihar while opposition INDIA bloc, which has the RJD, the Congress and the Left parties as the main constituents, is unlikely to get majority mark numbers.
Of the 243 seats up for grabs, the NDA's seat-sharing, the JD(U) and the BJP are contesting 101 seats each, the LJP (RV) is fighting on 29 seats, and the HAM(S) and RLM are contesting on six seats each.
Among the Grand Alliance or Mahagathbandhan, the RJD is contesting 143 seats, the Congress is fighting on 61 seats, the CPI nine and the CPI(M) has named four candidates. Meanwhile, the CPI(M-L)L has fielded 20 candidates, and the VIP has named 15 candidates.
In the 2020 elections, the NDA won 125 seats, led by the BJP with 74 and JD(U) with 43, while the Mahagathbandhan secured 110, including 75 for the RJD and 19 for Congress.