NEW DELHI: As Chhattisgarh awaits its Assembly Elections results on December 3, the Exit Polls released by India Today’s My Axis predicted the Congress defeating anti-incumbency in the state on Thursday.
According to the data acquired, they have predicted a neck-to-neck fight between the Grand Old Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with the former bagging 42 per cent of the vote share while the latter is slated to acquire 41 per cent. On the other hand, of the total votes acquired, the Congress party has attained 43 per cent male votes while attaining 41 per cent female vote share. With regards to the 2018 Assembly Elections results, the female vote share has decreased by 3 per cent for the Grand Old Party, while having increased their male vote share by a per cent.
However, in the entire hullabaloo, it is the BJP which appears as a clear winner having created a base for itself, following the 2018 elections where it only gained 33 per cent of the votes, while Congress had gained 43 per cent.
Following the triumph of the Congress in 2018, it will be the second time that it will be coming to power. It will be the second consecutive term in power for the Grand Old Party if they become the first party past the post on December 3.
However, presently, the buck lies in favour of both Congress and BJP. According to the exit polls, the former is slated to gain 40 to 50 seats, while the BJP is slated to gain 36 to 46 seats. The saffron party had earlier gained 15 seats in the state assembly.
These developments come at a time when Bhupesh Baghel’s Congress government in the state aimed to target farmers and tribal areas during his attempt to woo the public to get them to vote for the ‘Open Palm’ symbol. Initiatives such as Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana, and Godhan Nyay Yojana, have found respite among the farming populace.
On the other hand, the Congress’ increased need to appeal to Chhattisgarhi Hindus also became a focal point of their campaign through the Gaumutra procurement programme and the Ram Van Gaman Path. These narratives have also found solace in the survey highlighting 31 per cent of the surveyed wanting Baghel as their CM, while another 21 per cent wanted BJP’s Raman Singh.
In a development, however, it has been said that around 18 per cent of the surveyed have cited that they are ready to have anybody from the BJP as the CM.