Kharagpur (West Bengal) [India], May 4 : BJP leader Dilip Ghosh on Monday asserted that the outcome of the elections has already been "determined" and only the formal announcement is pending, expressing confidence that the BJP will form the government in West Bengal with a significant mandate.
Speaking on the political situation in the state, Ghosh said, "The results have already been determined; only the announcement is pending. The trust with which people have voted will be fulfilled. The new government and Bengal must move forward with India; it won't head towards Bangladesh. The public wants change. And the BJP will form the government with a good number of seats."
Alleging deterioration in law and order in the state, he further said, "Law and order didn't even exist in Bengal. Law and order is visible only since the Election Commission took charge. And just as the elections were conducted peacefully, the counting will also be peaceful, and similarly, the new government will take oath here."
Referring to alleged irregularities in past elections, Ghosh added, "They used to win by 8 lakh votes. Today women are coming out and saying they weren't allowed to vote for 15 years. Their voting cards were snatched a day before. Today those same people are protesting.... This time, people will vote in large numbers."
Exit polls for West Bengal have projected a tight contest between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress (TMC). While some projections, including Chanakya Strategies and Matrize, have given an edge to the BJP, others suggest a closer fight with TMC retaining a significant share of seats. Smaller parties are also expected to play a limited role in the outcome.
The security has been tightened across Kolkata ahead of counting day on May 4, with heavy deployment outside several strongrooms, including Sakhawat Memorial Government Girls' High School in Bhabanipur and Netaji Indoor Stadium, among others.
As vote counting begins, results for West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Keralam, Assam and Puducherry elections will be declared today.