Karnataka EXIT POLL 2023: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Bommai rejected the predictions given by exit polls which projected either hung assembly or Congress ahead of the ruling BJP on Wednesday.
"No question of hung assembly, we will win with absolute majority," the CM said.
Exit polls on Wednesday predicted a tight contest between the Congress and the BJP in the high-stakes Karnataka Assembly polls with most pollsters giving an edge to the grand old party.
The result for the three-cornered contest between the ruling BJP, the Congress and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda's Janata Dal (Secular) will be announced on Saturday.
Congress' reaction
Reacting to the predictions, the Congress tweeted, "As the exit polls roll in, it's becoming increasingly clear that the Congress party is on track for a resounding victory."
India TV-CNX exit poll's prediction
The Congress will emerge as the single largest party in the Karnataka assembly elections by winning 110 to 120 seats, says the India TV-CNX exit poll which was telecast on the news channel today. The party may either get a clear majority, or its tally could be a few seats short of the magic number.
The exit poll seat projections show, Congress may win 110-120 seats in the 224-seat assembly, the ruling BJP may come second with 80-90 seats, Janata Dal(S) may win 20-24 seats, while 'Others' including independents may win 1-3 seats.
In the 2018 elections, BJP had won 104, Congress had won 80, JD(S) had won 37, and 'Others' had won three seats.
Vote share projections in the exit poll show: Congress may get 41.57 per cent, BJP may get 35.61 per cent, JD(S) 16.1 pc, and 'Others' may get 6.72 per cent. In the 2018 elections, Congress had got 38.04 pc, BJP had got 36.22 pc, JD(S) 18.36 pc and 'Others' had got 7.38 pc votes.
The exit poll projection by other news channel predicted somewhat similar numbers.
In the 2018 Assembly elections, BJP emerged as the single largest party by winning 104 seats out of total 224, followed by the Congress at 80 and JD(S) at 37. There was one independent member, while BSP and Karnataka Pragnyavantha Janata Party (KPJP) had one legislator each.
With no party having a clear majority and as the Congress and JD(S) were trying to forge an alliance, B S Yediyurappa of BJP staked a claim and formed the government.
However, it had to resign within three days ahead of the trust vote, unable to muster the required numbers.
Subsequently, the Congress-JD(S) alliance formed the government with Kumaraswamy as CM, but the wobbly dispensation collapsed in 14 months as 17 legislators resigned and came out of the ruling coalition and defected to the BJP, facilitating it to come back to power.
In the by-polls held subsequently in 2019, the ruling party won 12 out of 15 seats.
In the outgoing Assembly, BJP has 116 MLAs, followed by the Congress at 69, and JD(S) at 29.
ALSO READ: Karnataka elections: Key seats to watch out for as stakes are high in THESE constituencies
ALSO READ: Karnataka Polls: PM urges people to vote in large numbers, says 'enrich the festival of democracy'
