Edge for NDA in 2019 polls
New Delhi: With just 48 hours left for the first phase of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections, the poll of polls - an average of all major opinion polls - predicted that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) could get 277 seats in the 2019 general election, which is just 5 seats more than the halfway mark of 272.
Predictions of prominent agencies showed that the BJP-led NDA may come back to power, but with a slim margin though the Congress and some other Opposition parties are likely to improve their tally.
The NDA, which contested elections under Narendra Modi's leadership, swept victory in 2014 Lok Sabha elections as it won 336 seats while the saffron party managed 282 on its own.
As per the survey, the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA), which pulled off three stunning victories in the Hindi heartland states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, is likely to increase its seat tally to 138 as opposed to its tally of 59 in 2014.
The Congress's individual score was 44 in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Other parties like Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, BSP, TRS and YSRCP, who are not part of the current NDA and UPA camps, are predicted to win 128 seats.
The others had managed to win 148 seats in 2014 polls despite the strong Modi wave.
Republic Bharat-Jan Ki Baat claimed that the NDA could get 310 seats this time, comfortably past the halfway mark, while the UPA may get 122 seats and others may settle with 111.
However, TV9 Bharat Varsh-C Voter forecast that the NDA may fall short of majority and secure 261 seats, while the UPA and others will get 143 and 139 seats, respectively.
Times Now-VMR gave 283 seats to NDA, 135 for UPA and 125 for others. News Nation predicted 273 seats for NDA, 133 for UPA and 137 for others. India TV-CNX gave 126 seats to UPA, 285 for NDA, and 132 for others.
By taking average of all the opinion polls, the seat tally for NDA is projected at 277, close to the majority mark of 272, while the Congress will win only 138 seats, and others 128.