Enthused by exit polls, BJP says will win nearly 85 seats in Assam

A day after most exit polls predicted a return to power for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Assam, the party said on Friday that it will win nearly 85 of the total 126 seats in the state along with its allies.

“The exit polls have given various figures. We are not accepting or rejecting their findings as they are based on different sample surveys. Our own findings are based on data provided by booth-level workers,” said Assam BJP president Ranjeet Kumar Dass.

“On the basis of that, BJP alone will win 70 seats. Our alliance partners Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) will win 8 and United Peoples Party Liberal (UPPL) will win 5 seats, taking our seat count to 83. There are 21 constituencies, where our chances are doubtful. Of them we will win at least 3 seats, which will take our total seats to 85,” he added.

Dass gave details of the constituencies which the BJP and its alliance partners would win and also the approximate number of votes the party would secure in most of these seats. He added that the findings are based on what party workers have calculated and there could be some difference in the actual outcome.

Also Read | Exit polls project 2nd term for BJP in Assam; Cong says it isn’t the true picture

In 2016, BJP had won 60 seats and formed its first government in Assam with the support of AGP (14) and Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF), which bagged 12 seats. This time, BJP had contested 93 seats, its alliance partners AGP and UPPL fought from 29 and 11 seats respectively.

“The alliance of Congress with All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) hasn’t been accepted by voters in Upper Assam as it was deemed an unholy nexus. Because of this alliance, Congress will lose at least six of the seven seats it had won in the region five years ago,” said Dass.

“The Congress has already started talking about alleged discrepancies in electronic voting machines (EVMs), which clearly show they are losing. The party talks about EVMs in states where they lose, but accept the outcome in places where they are victorious,” he added.

On Thursday, the India Today poll had given 75-85 seats to BJP and 40-50 to the Congress. A similar prediction was made by the Axis My India poll. News24-Chanakya gave 70 seats to BJP and 56 to Congress. The Republic-CNX poll predicted 74-84 seats for BJP and 40-50 for Congress and Times Now poll gave 72 to BJP and 53 to Congress.

On the other hand, the ABP-CVoter poll says it will be a very close contest between the two alliances. It gives 58-71 seats to BJP and 53-66 to the Congress alliance.

“The process for these exit polls isn’t scientific. Nearly 15 million voters took part in the Assam polls, but the exit polls did sample survey of 15,000 to 30,000 voters. This doesn’t reflect the opinion of most voters. These surveys are also not based on the opinion of a cross-section of voters,” said Assam Congress president Ripun Bora.

“Exit polls have been proved wrong in several instances including for the assembly polls of Chattisgarh, Rajasthan and Bihar. The exit polls released on Thursday were biased and manipulated and done with the intention of demoralising Congress workers as well as exerting pressure on officials who take part in the counting process. We reject these exit polls and are confident of forming the next government,” he added.