Election Results: Shockers and Highlights

Election Results: Shockers & Highlights 

The results of the 18th Lok Sabha elections are in. For those who followed the entire day's proceedings, it's undeniable that vote counting has rarely been this captivating in recent history. The election results have produced some shocking revelations and surprising highlights. Here's a summary of the key outcomes.

Exit Pollsters Have Egg on Their Face

Virtually all exit pollsters now find themselves in an embarrassing position. Most predicted the NDA would secure between 350 to 415 seats, while forecasts for the INDIA alliance ranged from 95 to 130. However, by 7:30 PM on Tuesday, the BJP was leading with only 239 seats according to Election Commission data, with the NDA's total reaching around 290 (with votes still being counted and result not declared). It is evident that the NDA will not be able to form a government without the support of the TDP or the JD(U) who have bagged about 16 and 12 seats (final tally is not out yet).

The highlight of the exit poll debacle was the emotional scene of Axis My India's Pradeep Gupta crying on live television, with Rajdeep Sardesai consoling him on India Today.

Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar Emerge as Kingmakers

This outcome was not entirely anticipated. By around 7:15 PM, TDP's Chandrababu Naidu had secured 16 seats, and JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar had garnered 12 seats. Both being part of the NDA, have virtually become the kingmakers. Naidu, having also swept the assembly elections with 134 seats and reducing YSRCP to just 12, has emerged as a pivotal figure.

Both NDA and INDIA alliances are vying for Naidu's favour, with speculation rife that the INDIA bloc has made him irresistible offers. The pressing question remains: Which way will Naidu and Nitish swing? Their decision will likely determine the fate of the next government.

"Chaar Sau Paar" Dream Shattered

During the elections both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have been going from state to state vociferously sloganeering: "ab ki baar chaar sau paar", (this time, we will cross the 400 mark). This very slogan has come to bite the BJP in its back. Let alone 400, the party is also not able to cough up a comfortable majority. Who would have thought that the BJP would need Nitish and Naidu's help to form the government until yesterday?

BJP President JP Nadda in an interview to the Indian Express even went so far to say that the party doesn't need the RSS as much. Nadda, responding to a question on how the RSS presence has changed between the time of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and now, said to The Indian Express , “Shuru mein hum aksham honge, thora kum honge, RSS ki zaroorat padti thi… Aaj hum badh gaye hain, saksham hai… toh BJP apne aap ko chalati hai (In the beginning, we would have been less capable, smaller and needed the RSS. Today, we have grown and we are capable. The BJP runs itself). That’s the difference.”

Narendra Modi's over confidence and Amit Shah's prominence in the BJP has not gone down well with the party. Speculation in the media and social media is rife that the RSS wants a resolution to choose parliamentary leader within BJP and itseems over 50 percent of BJP MPs don't want Narendra Modi as the PM candidate. 

Narendra Modi Wins With Less Margin as Oppsoed to Rahul Gandhi's Resounding Victory in 2 Seats 

The election results have come in as a major personal setback for Narendra Modi. In Varanasi, Modi was expected to win with a large margin. But as per the latest data from the Election Commission of India, though Narendra Modi has won the Varanasi seat for the third consecutive term, his victory margin has significantly reduced.

As per data, Modi has won with a margin of just 1,52,513 votes whereas Congress's Ajai Rai who stood against Modi managed to secure about 4,60,000 votes with the PM securing about 6,12,970 votes. 

On the other hand Rahul Gandhi comfortably won both his seats in Wayanad with a margin of 3,64,422 votes and Rae Bareli with a margin of 3,90,030 votes as per the data released by the ECI. 

UP Shocker for BJP

One of the biggest shockers for BJP came from Uttar Pradesh with the BJP securing about 33 seats and the SP-Congress combine coughing up about 43 seats with Congress securing 6 and Samajwadi garnering 37 seats as per the latest figures from the ECI.

Another shocker for the BJP is that it is also trailing in the Faizabad Lok Sabha constituency which is the centre of the BJP's temple politics. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in January, had inaugurated the Ram Mandir in the Ayodhya which falls under Faizabad constituency. As per the latest figures, Samajwadi Party's Awadesh Prasad is leading in Faizabad with a margin of 54,567 votes.

Mamata Banerjee Asks PM to Resign

In West Bengal, as per the latest figures, the TMC has been able to secure 29 seats with BJP securing just 12 and Congress getting one seat. In a Press Conference, TMC supremo lashed out at the exit poll surveying companies and asked the Prime Minister to immediately resign as the election results have proven beyond doubt that Modi has lost all credibility.  

Kishori Lal Wins Amethi

Kishori Lal who was named as the Amethi candidate by the Congress party in the last minute over Rahul Gandhi surprised every one with his victory. Union Minister and BJP MP Smriti Irani, who was seeking a re-election from Amethi conceded defeat after Kishori Lal won with a margin of 1,67,196 votes as per the latest ECI figures. 

AAP - No Sympathy Wave

One would have thought before today that Aam Aadmi Party's Arvind Kejriwal could garner a lot of sympathy votes after his and his senior party leaders' arrest. However that has not happened. AAP is set to lose all 4 contesting seats in Delhi and BJP is leading in all seven constituencies in the national capital.  According to the latest ECI figures, AAP is leading in only three seats in Punjab.

BJP Opens Account in Kerala

BJP candidate and Malayalam film actor Suresh Gopi has scripted history in Kerala by winning the Thrissur Lok Sabha seat by a margin of 74,686 votes. Gopi, a former Rajya Sabha member defeated CPI's VS Sunil Kumar and Congress' K Muraleedharan. 

This and more, these elections have thrown up many surprises and the ensuing days will be filled with a lot of political manouevrings and politicians swinging from one pole to another. As mentioned in our earlier piece, it is proven beyond doubt that regional parties have shown that they hold the key in these elections. No matter who forms the government, the election results have shown one thing: no single party has a majority. The next government, lacking a clear majority, will need to prioritise dialogue and collaboration over unilateral decision-making.

(Pls note: The figures mentioned above are numbers that were released by the Election Commission of India as of 7.30 P.M. The final figures are yet to be declared by the ECI.)