INDIA bloc will win 295 seats, says Kharge after meeting INDIA bloc leaders

Opposition parties predict INDIA bloc will win 295 seats, urge vigilance on counting day. Leaders express optimism.

INDIA bloc parties will win at the very least 295 seats Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said at the end of a meeting of 13 Opposition parties at his residence in Delhi, offering a counter to the exit polls figures. He also implored all polling agents of the Opposition parties to remain vigilant on the counting day of June 4 asking them not to leave the counting halls till the last vote is counted.

The figure of 295 was arrived on the basis of a state-wise assessment taking inputs from all the leaders present at the meeting. The INDIA bloc has also sought an appointment with the Election Commission to raise issues about the counting exercise. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is to surrender and return to jail on Sunday at the end of his bail term, is likely to accompany the delegation.

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“INDIA bloc will win at least 295 seats... it will be over that, but not less. We have analysed after discussing with all the leaders, and there is no doubt in the number. This is people’s survey, based on the information given by people,” Mr. Kharge said, flanked by all the leaders present there. Terming the exit polls “sarkari survey” (government’s survey), Mr. Kharge insisted that the 295 figure that the INDIA bloc had reached is a result of “janata ka survey”(people’s survey).

“Exuberant” and “enthusiastic” were the two adjectives used by the attendees to describe the mood of the meeting. Sources said the meeting began with a conversation on the “precautions” needed for the counting day. RJD leader and former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Tejashwi Yadav advocated for remaining alert on counting day, seeking recounting on seats that went down to the wire in the 2020 Bihar Assembly election.

Each of the leaders was asked to give their assessment of INDIA bloc’s electoral performance. A source said that Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav expressed the view that, even by a conservative outlook, he expected the alliance to win at least 50% of the seats in Uttar Pradesh. Mr. Tejashwi Yadav, made a similar prediction for Bihar, claiming half of the 40 seats for the bloc. In Maharashtra, where two factions of the Shiv Sena and the NCP are fighting each other in opposing alliances, former Chief Minister Sharad Pawar said that the INDIA bloc could win 26 seats out of the 48 seats in the State. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Anil Desai took a far more optimistic stand, claiming that the Opposition bloc could win up to 32 seats. The leaders concluded that the bloc would do exceedingly well in the southern States, leaving no berths for the BJP in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Congress, as per its assessment, could win up to 15 seats in Karnataka and 10 in Telangana.

“There was a general consensus, that in this election the INDIA bloc has been able to establish a bond with the voters and there is a sentiment to vote out the Narendra Modi government. Anything more than 230 for the BJP will clearly show there was manipulation,” a senior leader who attended the meeting said.