The Election Commission today banned exit polls till March 3, till the completion of assembly elections in five states of Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Manipur.
In a notification issued today, it also banned release of opinion polls in any manner on electronic media under Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 during period of 48 hours, counted backwards from close of poll, in each phase.
While the ban on exit polls would apply to both the electronic and print media till 5:30 pm on March 3, the ban on opinion polls will only apply to electronic media.
The EC clarified, "...There is no ban on opinion poll in print media as Section 126 of Representation of the People Act 1951, does not apply to print media."