The counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections 2014 is underway and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is leading in early trends.
Trends are now available for 151 out of the 543 seats. The BJP+ allies are ahead in 88 seats, the Congress+ allies are leading in 38 seats, while the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) is leading in two seats, the AIADMK in five, the Samajwadi Party in six and others are leading in eleven.
The BJP's prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi is ahead of his rivals in Varanasi and Vadodara. Former army chief General (retired) V.K. Singh, actress Hema Malini and BJP leader Uma Bharti are leading in Ghaziabad, Mathura and Jhansi respectively.
Hema Malini, who is leading in Mathura, said: "Like before an examination, I am nervous, but also confident of a win."
Counting of votes to elect representatives to the 16th Lok Sabha and four State Assemblies-Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim-began at 8 a.m. this morning amid tight security.
The exit polls have projected that the BJP and its allies would touch the half-way mark in the 543-member Lok Sabha. Most polls show the incumbent UPA regime getting between 101 and 148 seats.
This year's nine-phased general elections have witnessed the highest-ever voter turnout of 66 per cent.
The counting of votes will determine who will form the next government at the Centre.
The approximate voter turnout in this year's general election was a litttle over 551 million.
