 "BJP, Congress")
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was leading in three of four states in key regional polls on Sunday, according to the data from the Election Commission of India (ECI). It indicates a big boost to Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of general elections in six months.
The BJP was leading in all three heartland states, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, according to ECI and trends from the counting of votes shown on TV channels. These three states and Telangana voted last month before the national elections, which are due by May next year.
According to ECI, in Madhya Pradesh, the BJP was leading on 155 seats out of the total of 230. Congress followed it with 73 seats and others with 2 seats. To secure a majority, a party or coalition needs to get 116 seats.
In Rajasthan, the BJP was leading on 113 seats. It was followed by 70 seats for Congress and 13 seats for other parties. To win a majority, a party must secure 101 seats in the state.
In Chhattisgarh, out of 90, BJP was leading on 47 seats, followed by 40 for Congress. Other parties were ahead on two seats. For a majority, a party needs to win 46 seats in the state.
In Telangana, Congress was leading on 61 seats. CM K Chandrashekar Rao's Bharat Rashtra Samithi is leading on 38 seats. BJP is leading on 11 seats and AIMIM on two seats. For a majority, a party needs to win 60 seats in the state.
The counting in these four states began at 8 am on Sunday. The elections in these states were held last month between November 7 and 30.
