Election results in four states will be out today as parties wait with bated breath

NEW DELHI: The results of four of the five assembly elections, which are considered as semi-finals of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, will be out today.

The countig of votes in these states-Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana will be crucial as the strengths and weaknesses of the BJP and the Congress will be assessed ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Counting of votes in Mizoram has been postponed to tomorrow, following the demand of the Christian majority.

Counting of votes has begun from 8 am. An approximate picture of people's mandate will be clear within an hour. Winners and losers will be decided by noon.

The results of the exit polls that came out yesterday are both comforting and worrying for the Congress and the BJP. Most polls predicted that the Congress would retain power in Chhattisgarh with 90 seats, while the BJP was predicted to win in Rajasthan. In closely contested Madhya Pradesh, the ruling BJP is predicted to have a slight edge. In Telangana, which has 119 seats, the Congress is predicted to win against the ruling BRS.

The future of Chief Ministers Shivrajsingh Chouhan (Madhya Pradesh), Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan), Bhupesh Bagel (Chhattisgarh), Chandrasekhar Rao (Telangana) and former Chief Ministers Vasundhara Raje Scindia (Rajasthan) and Raman Singh (Chhattisgarh) will also be decided.

If it shows a good performance, the Congress can establish dominance within the 'INDIA' front and can face the Lok Sabha elections with confidence. In 2018, the BJP, which showed strength in the Lok Sabha elections despite facing setbacks in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, is also hoping to win.

Based on exit poll survey results and booth level reports, major parties are meeting in all the four states and assessing the situation. Congress has started moving MLAs from states, where they are getting majority, to safe places.