No unanimity in exit polls, different versions out : Voter predicts 25 to 31 Assembly seats for BJP
Source: The Sangai Express / Courtesy-Times of India

New Delhi, March 10 2017: The Congress party's 15-year rule in the North Eastern State of Manipur seems to be in peril, as exit polls forecast the BJP will likely win the maximum number of seats in the 60-strong Manipur Legislative Assembly election.

According to the CVoter exit polls, the BJP is expected to win 25 to 31 of the 60 seats up for grabs, with the Congress trailing second at a probable 17 to 23 seats.

If the projections prove accurate, this would be a huge victory for the BJP, which received a major drubbing � failing to open its account � in the 2012 elections.

It would also be a stunning reversal for the Congress, after it surged to power in 2012 with 42 seats in the 60-member House.

The CVoter predictions are based on a sample of 1,330 people.

The BJP is projected to win 34.8 per cent of the vote share and the Congress is expected to receive 32.7 per cent, a sharp drop from its 45.6 per cent vote share in the previous election.

Region wise, the BJP is expected to have gained the lion's share of seats in Outer Manipur and New Districts, and its inroads in the Inner Manipur Constituencies is said to have cut into the Congress' seat share.

However, since the BJP is just shy of the 31 seats required to gain majority, it will be looking to regional parties for the support required to form the Government and keep the Congress out of power.

The Naga Peoples' Front, the ruling party in Nagaland and a BJP ally, will play a crucial role if it comes down to the wire.

On the other hand, the Axis exit poll survey gives Congress the lead in the State, with 42% votes to the party.

The exit poll predicts 30-36 seats for Congress and 16-22 seats for the BJP.

The Assembly elections to elect the 60 members of the State Assembly were held in two phases, on March 4 and March 8, with the second phase witnessing a record 86 per cent voter turnout.

Both National parties brought out the big guns to sway voters in their favour, with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi hitting the campaign trail with much gusto and fanfare in the State.

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