Terming the exit polls as ‘bogus’, the Congress claimed they were a ‘deliberate attempt’ to justify election rigging and part of the ‘psychological games’ played by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to demoralize the INDIA alliance’s workers and supporters.
Speaking to the press outside the AICC headquarters, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh criticized Prime Minister Modi for holding several meetings, including a long brainstorming session to review the 100-day agenda of the ‘new government’. Ramesh described these meetings as ‘pressure tactics’ designed to signal the bureaucracy and administrative structure that Modi is returning to power.
‘These are mind games — ‘I am coming back, I am going to be the prime minister again,’ he said. ‘He is sending a signal to the bureaucracy and the administrative structure of the country. We hope that the civil servants entrusted with ensuring a fair vote count will not be intimidated or frightened by these pressure tactics,’ Ramesh added.
Former Congress Chief Rahul Gandhi reacted to the exit polls predicting a resounding win for the BJP-led NDA, stating, ‘This is not an exit poll, it’s Modi media poll. The INDIA bloc will get 295 seats.’
All ten major exit polls forecast a decisive win for the BJP, with some even projecting a two-thirds majority for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the 543-member House.
The projections suggest that the BJP is poised to surpass its 2019 tally, potentially reaching 350 seats, while its main rival, the Congress, is expected to secure fewer than 75 seats.