The counting of votes is all set to start in Maharashtra and Haryana for the Assembly elections on Sunday, October 19, 2014 and from what it seems, it may mean high hopes for the BJP.
The counting of votes will start sharp at 8:00 a.m India Time.
Former Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan wins from Karad south.
Congress heavyweight Narayan Rane loses from his constituency.
If the exit polls are anywhere close to right predictions, the saffron party may make a comeback in both the states, although it will need support for majority.
The Maharashtra Assembly holds more importance for the BJP, where it broke up with long time alliance Shiv Sena to come up with 280 candidates that it has fielded.
The states- Maharashtra and Haryana- had the polls on October 15, where there are 288 seats in Maharashtra and 90 in Haryana.
When latest reports come in, the BJP was leading in 111, ShivSena in 61 and Cong and NCP 44 each.
Follow live updates of counting here.
Party-wise results here.
The voter turnout was excellent at 63.13 per cent in Maharashtra, while Haryana recorded the highest-ever turnout at 76.54 per cent, said a report on Zee News.
In Maharashtra vote counting, there are a total of 288 counting centers, at 269 locations.
It is expected that the trends will be visible from around 12 pm on Sunday, while actual results should be out by 4 pm.
Exit poll firm Chanakya has predicted the BJP forming the government solely in Maharashtra favoring 151 seats of 288, Cicero reasserted its lead with 124 seats, but by falling short of the majority required for forming the government.
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Apart from BJP, Shiv Sena has fielded a total of 282 candidates, while MNS has fielded 219 and Congress 287.
NCP and BSP have fielded 278 and 260 candidates respectively.
For the saffron party, the stakes are high because the results can show a hint on Modi’s popularity at the state level.
Also, this is one of the major elections in the state, since the BJP came to power at centre in May this year.
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