‘Hopeful that results are completely opposite of exit polls’: Sonia Gandhi on Lok Sabha election 2024 results

Congress leader Sonia Gandhi said that while they await the Lok Sabha election 2024 results tomorrow, they are hopeful that the exit polls will prove to be wrong. 

“We are very hopeful that our results are completely the opposite of what the exit polls are saying,” said Sonia Gandhi a day ahead of the declaration of the Lok Sabha election 2024 on June 4.  She said for now, they will wait and see. 

Her comments come after most exit polls show Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP winning the polls with a thumping majority, as was earlier predicted by the party. Axis My India-India Today exit poll, on Saturday, predicted 361-401 seats for the BJP-led NDA. This is way above the 272 seats required to form the government. 

It predicted INDIA bloc to be restricted to 131-166 seats, and 8-20 seats to go to ‘others’. 

The poll pundits have called it BJP’s best-ever performance, and have predicted PM Modi’s return with an even bigger mandate.

Markets too reflected this excitement on Monday as Sensex zoomed to a record high of 76,738 in early deals and Nifty hit an all-time high of 23,338, ahead of the election results on Tuesday. 

The Congress and the INDIA bloc, however, have dismissed the exit polls and claimed them to be the work of ‘fantasy’. They have asserted that the opposition INDIA alliance will form the next government. 

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, “"It is not an exit poll, it is a Modi media poll. It is his fantasy poll.” INDIA bloc leaders have said that they would win 295 seats. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said that they are assured to win 295 seats based on "people's survey". 

"This is a survey of people. People have given this information to our leaders. The government surveys are there and their media friends also inflate figures and put it out. Therefore, we want to tell you about the reality,” Kharge told reporters.