ABP-CVoter Exit Poll: Jharkhand Stares At Hung Assembly, Tight Contest Between BJP and JMM+

The survey has revealed that even as the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha+ (Congress & Rashtriya Janata Dal) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are locked in a hotly contested battle to emerge victors, both would find it tough to cross the magic figure of 41 seats.

The five-phase polls were held from November 30 and December 20, and the official results will be declared on December 23. (File Photo/ Getty, PTI)

New Delhi: As the fifth and final phase of Jharkhand polls for 16 assembly constituencies concluded on Friday, ABP-CVoter conducted a survey to find out whether the Opposition parties may pull off a surprise and unseat the BJP in the industry-dependant and mineral-rich state. The survey has revealed that even as the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha+ (Congress & Rashtriya Janata Dal) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are locked in a hotly contested battle to emerge victors, both would find it tough to cross the magic figure of 41 seats. According to the post-poll survey, BJP is likely to win 32 seats in the 81-member Assembly. Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), its allies Congress & RJD are slated to get 35 seats, while the All Jharkhand Students’ Union (AJSU) is projected to win 5 seats. Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) is predicted to win 3 seats. Other parties in fray may also secure 6 seats. The exit poll has suggested BJP may clock 37 per cent vote share while JMM and its partners may get 34 per cent. AJSU 7 per cent, JVM expected to get 8 per cent. Others may gather 14 per cent of the vote share. In 2014 elections, the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 37 seats and its ally AJSU contributed 5 seats to their combined tally of 42. The figure was enough for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to cross the majority mark of 41. The JMM bagged 19 seats, while JVM won eight seats. The Congress on the other hand bagged six seats. The BJP has this time claimed that it would get "Abki baar 65 paar" in the elections. Opposition coalition's chief ministerial candidate Hemant Soren is leading the alliance comprising the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). According to their seat-sharing agreement, the JMM had placed its candidates in 43 seats, Congress 31 and RJD in seven constituencies. Jharkhand has a large tribal population. An alliance of Opposition parties is making a determined bid to oust and defenestrate the BJP government. On the other hand, the NDA allies — the BJP and the AJSU party which had allied in 2019 general elections — clashed in 15 of the total 81 Assembly seats. The AJSU Party is headed by Sudesh Mahto. The five-phase polls were held from November 30 and December 20, and the official results will be declared on December 23. Jharkhand has an 81-member Assembly, which expires on January 5, 2020. Raghubar Das is the first state chief minister to have completed the full term of five years in the state. The BJP has asserted that it has provided a stable, clean and development-oriented government in Jharkhand, with the Opposition claiming that the state's progress has stalled under its rule.