Election Result: Double Engine Returns In UP, BJP Sweeps 3 More States. AAP-Ka Punjab | Key Takeaways

Election Result 2020: BJP made history by retaining power in Uttar Pradesh with a massive mandate and also pulled out a stellar performance in three other states. Meanwhile, AAP secured a landslide victory, routing the Congress in Punjab.

Election Result 2022: The final verdict of Assembly elections in five states is out and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) managed to pull out a spectacular performance in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) secured a landslide victory in Punjab.

The March 10 turned out to be similar to what was predicted a few days ago in Exit Polls with BJP winning four states, AAP sweeping Punjab and routing Congress from the border state.

Holi came a week early for the BJP riding on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's effective implementation of welfare policies to create a "new record".

In UP, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also scripted history by becoming the first CM of the state to return to power after completing a full five-year term in office.

Even in states such as Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur, BJP secured a comfortable mandate by relegating Congress to the margins with the grand old party set to witness its poorest performance ever in the state Assembly polls.

After today's result, Congress now remains in power only in two states Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, at an all-time low. In UP, the party managed to secure only two seats despite a high-decibel campaign led by Priyanka Gandhi and other bigwigs. Like Congress, now AAP will also be in power in two states.

Even Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party (SP) that made a vigorous bid for power during election campaigning managed to win only 125 seats. However, it was a significant jump from the 47 seats it won last time.

Election Result 2022 | The Numbers

Though counting of votes is almost over in four states by late evening, the process is still underway in UP and the final results are expected to be released late night or early morning. Here's the state-wise tally available at 10 PM.

Uttar Pradesh

BJP and its allies have won or are leading on as many as 273 seats in Uttar Pradesh which has a total of 403 Assembly seats. Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party alliance managed to secure or were ahead in 125 seats. The Congress was reduced to just 2 seats in the state and Bahujan Samaj Party managed to win one.

Punjab

In the 117-member Punjab Assembly, the AAP won as many as 92 seats, Congress 18 , SAD 3, BJP 2, BSP and Independent won one seat each. In terms of vote share, the AAP won 42 per cent of the total votes cast, as against 23.7 per cent it had won five years ago.

Uttarakhand

The BJP won big in Uttarakhand getting 45 seats to retain power and was ahead in two in the 70-member Assembly. Congress here won or was leading in 18 seats.

Goa

In the 40-member Goa Assembly, the BJP had won 20 seats while Congress was set to win 12. AAP won two seats, Goa Forward Party one, Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party two, Revolutionary Goans Party won one, while three seats were won by Independent candidates.

Manipur

In the 60-member Manipur Assembly, the ruling BJP retained power by winning 32 seats, while the Congress could bag only five seats.

Surprisingly, the Janata Dal(United) won six seats in Manipur, whereas the Kuki People's Alliance won two, Naga People's Front five, National People's Party 7 and three seats went to Independent candidates.

Election Result 2022 | Key Takeaways

* After a resounding comeback in four states, beating anti-incumbency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi echoed that the Assembly poll results are a stamp of approval for the BJP's pro-poor and pro-active governance. He also took a jibe at the poll pundits, saying that going by their logic, 2022's results have paved the way for 2024 for the BJP.

* Modi also thanked the women voters and first-time voters, who, he claimed, "played a major role in BJP's landslide victories". "We are blessed to get the blessings of women voters. It is the women voters who ensured BJP's win across seats... They are the drivers of our victory," the Prime Minister said.

* Soon after doing the unexpected, AAP Chief Arvind Kejriwal said that the public has made it clear that he is not a terrorist. He said terrorists are those who have been looting the country. Kejriwal also said the first revolution took place in Delhi, today it has taken place in Punjab, and now this will spread to the whole country.

* After putting up a dismal performance in the Assembly elections in five states, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accepted the people's verdict and congratulated the winning parties. Several other senior leaders of the party conceded defeat and said that it is time to reform organisational leadership in a manner that will reignite those ideas and inspire the people.

* Several political experts opined that the main reason behind Akhilesh Yadav's below expectation performance was the selection of faulty candidate selection and swapping of candidates. Though there has been no reaction from Samajwadi Party on election result, a senior RLD functionary told news agency IANS that the party leadership would discuss the election results threadbare to identify where it went wrong in convincing people.

(With inputs from agencies.)