Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 2 (ANI): After exit poll predictions showed the BJP-led NDA gaining a comfortable majority in the Lok Sabha elections, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday called it a "corporate game" and said that the INDIA Alliance is going to form the government by winning 295-310 seats.
"This is a corporate game. If tomorrow we are in power and if we have a lot of money, then we can also come up with whatever figure we want. The INDIA Alliance is going to form the government by winning 295-310 seats. In Maharashtra, we are going to win 35+ seats," Raut said.
Exit polls on Saturday predicted that the Bhartiya Janata Party-led National-Democratic Alliance (NDA) will leave behind the INDIA bloc to clinch victory in 32 to 35 seats in Maharashtra.
Voting in the state of Maharashtra for 48 seats concluded in the first five phases of the Lok Sabha elections.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP secured 23 out of 48 seats, while Shiv Sena won 18 seats. Nationalist Congress Party managed to secure victory on four seats.
The state, with its 48 Lok Sabha seats, is the second-largest contributor to the lower house of Parliament after Uttar Pradesh known for its political diversity and significant electoral influence, Maharashtra plays a crucial role in shaping national politics.
Maharashtra witnessed the poll battle between the Shiv Sena-UBT (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray faction) & the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction)-BJP alliance and the NCP (Ajit Pawar) and the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar).
Under the seat-sharing arrangement, the BJP contested in 28 constituencies, while its allies Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) fought in 14 constituencies and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP in five constituencies.
On the other hand, Maha Vikas Aghadi members of Shiv Sena (UBT) contested in 21 constituencies, Congress in 17, and the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) in 10 constituencies.
Meanwhile, the India News- NewsX-D-Dynamics released its exit poll prediction for the Lok Sabha election 2024. As per the exit poll, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is slated to win as many as 315 seats of the 543 seats on its own, and 371 seats in alliance with its NDA partners.
The Congress, meanwhile, will win as many as 60 seats, and 125 seats in alliance with the other INDI Alliance parties. Other parties that are not in alliance with the NDA or the INDI Alliance are expected to win 47 seats, it predicted.
It is pertinent to note that the INDIA bloc overall tally of 125 seats includes the three seats that might be won by the UDF in Kerala.
If the exit poll predictions come true on June 4 when votes are counted, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will become the only PM after Jawaharlal Nehru to win three successive terms in Lok Sabha polls. The exit polls predicted 'Modi 3.0' with PM Modi having led the BJP's poll effort through rallies and roadshows in various parts of the country. (ANI)
