Several exit polls on Saturday predicted a clear majority for the Congress in Haryana and gave an edge to its alliance with the National Conference in Jammu and Kashmir, with the regional partner emerging as the single largest party.Haryana’s contest is primarily between the BJP, aiming to form a government for the third consecutive term, and the Congress, hoping for a comeback.The BJP, after winning only five of the state’s 10 Lok Sabha seats in 2024—compared to sweeping them in 2019—seeks to maintain its continued popularity. Meanwhile, Congress, which secured the remaining five seats, is optimistic about its chances to form the state government.These assembly elections are crucial for the BJP, which failed for the first time in a decade to secure a majority in the recent general elections.This election offers the party a chance to reaffirm its standing among voters. For the Congress, the elections present a significant opportunity to regain power in the state, following its stronger-than-expected performance in the Lok Sabha polls.HaryanaThe C-Voter-India Today polls gave Congress 50-58 seats and the BJP 20-28 seats in Haryana, while the Republic Bharat-Matrize polls put the Congress tally even higher at 55-62 seats as against the BJP’s 18-24.The Red Mike-Datansh exit poll gave the Congress 50-55 seats in Haryana and the BJP at 20-25, while Dhruv Research pegged the Congress at 50-64 and the BJP at 22-32.The Peoples’ Pulse exit poll gave the Congress 49-60 seats and the BJP 20-32 seats in Haryana.Most exit polls pegged the INLD’s tally higher than that of the JJP, while others were seen getting up to 10 seats.The BJP has been in power in Haryana since 2014, with Manohar Lal Khattar as chief minister for over nine years.The BJP’s second term in office in 2019 was in alliance with the JJP, with Dushyant Singh Chautala as deputy chief minister.Khattar and Chautala quit in March ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, making way for Nayab Singh Saini, a prominent OBC face of the BJP, as chief minister.Chautala’s JJP also snapped ties with the BJP.The Congress is hoping to make a comeback in Haryana, with former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda leading the poll campaign.Jammu and KashmirIn Jammu and Kashmir, the C-Voter-India Today survey put the National Conference-Congress alliance at 40-48 seats and the BJP at 27-32 seats in the 90-member assembly of the Union Territory.Elections were held in Jammu and Kashmir after a gap of 10 years and the bifurcation of the state into two union territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh — in 2019.Dainik Bhaskar pegged the National Conference (NC)-Congress alliance at 35-40 and the BJP at 20-25 in Jammu and Kashmir, while Axis My India polls gave NC-Congress between 35 and 45 seats, the BJP in the range of 24-34, and others 4-10 seats.Peoples’ Pulse saw the NC-Congress alliance getting 46-50 seats as against the BJP’s 23-27, while Republic-Gulistan put the NC-Congress tally at 31-36 as against the BJP’s 28-30.In different polls, the PDP was seen winning between five and 12 seats, while others were also seen bagging four-16 seats.In summary, the JKNC+ INC alliance appears to be a frontrunner in most projections, while the BJP is competitive. The PDP is expected to perform modestly, but the Others could also play a crucial role depending on the election’s final outcome.The results of the assembly elections will be announced on October 8.
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