Counting of votes began today for the assembly elections in Haryana – where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is eyeing a straight third term – and Jammu and Kashmir, which voted in an assembly election after 10 years. In Haryana, where the polling for the 90 seats was held on October 5, the Congress has crossed the halfway mark of 46 seats and is currently leading on 53, early leads showed. Various exit polls have predicted a clear majority for the Congress in the state.
The latest leads show that the alliance of the Congress and the National Conference (NC) has crossed the halfway mark of 46 seats in Jammu and Kashmir, which voted in three phases (September 18, September 25, and October 1) and also has 90 assembly constituencies.
Jammu and Kashmir voted in its first assembly elections since 2014, first as a Union Territory and first after the removal of Article 370, which gave the erstwhile state special status. Statehood has been a major issue in the elections and its restoration has been promised by the BJP, including by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Other parties that can play a key role in J&K, where exit polls have predicted a hung house, are the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the People's Conference, the Democratic Progressive Azad Party and the Apni Party.
