Exit polls on two television channels predicted a fractured verdict in both Bihar and Jharkhand, where the final phase of assembly elections was held on Wednesday.
An exit poll conducted by A C Nielsen for Star News and Telegraph predicted 85 seats for the Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar. It said the BJP and its allies would win 96 seats and Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party will emerge victorious in 26 seats, while the Congress would bag eight seats. The remaining 28 will go to 'others'.
The exit poll by Zee News-C Voter for Bihar projected the RJD getting 80 seats and the Congress 40. The BJP and its allies will win 80 seats, while 40 seats will be won by 'others', it said. There was no break-up given for the Lok Janshakti Party.
The two polls said the LJP was poised to play a crucial role in government formation in Bihar.
For the 81-member Jharkhand Assembly, the exit poll on Star News gave 37 seats to the BJP-JD(U) combine, 28 to the Congress and the JMM. It said the RJD will capture five seats, while one seat will go to 'others'.
The Zee News poll predicted 37 seats for the Congress-JMM alliance and 33 for the BJP-JD(U). It said the RJD would win four seats, with seven going to 'others'.
As per an Aaj Tak-Headlines Today-ORG-MARG poll, the RJD and its allies are likely to secure 89 seats in Bihar, 13 down from the last election. The BJP-JD(U) combine is expected to emerge as the largest combination with 101 seats, up 23 from its performance in the previous election.
The exit poll said the LJP will get 22 seats and the Congress 26. Independents will win 24 seats, it said.
According to the poll, in Jharkhand, the ruling BJP-JD(U) combine will emerge as the largest alliance with 39 seats, but will fall short of a majority in the 81-member assembly. The poll has predicted 28 seats for the Congress-JMM combine, 4 for the RJD and 10 for independents and others, according to a press release from Aaj Tak.
