by Peerzda Arshad Hamid
NEW DELHI, May 23 (Xinhua) -- As counting of votes for India's 17th general elections is still underway, trends Thursday showed the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is all set to win the elections with a landslide victory, official data showed.
According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), BJP was leading with 295 seats, and together with the alliance partners under the banner of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), they were leading on 344 seats.
The country's main opposition, Congress party, was leading on 53 seats, and together with the alliance partners under the banner of United Progressive Alliance (UPA), they were leading on 90 seats.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself won in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi with a margin of over 460,000 votes while BJP President Amit Shah won in Gujarat's Gandhinagar by over 550,000 votes.
Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi was trailing by 19,000 votes from his Uttar Pradesh's Amethi constituency. However, from his second seat in Kerala's Wayanad constituency he was leading by over 400,000 votes.
Through the campaign, Modi projected himself as the strong leader who could protect the country. However, opposition's salvos for targeting Modi for rising unemployment, agrarian crisis, corruption, currency ban (demonetisation) and religious divides seemed not to have worked.
"We never expected BJP would win with such a landslide," a Congress party leader on condition of anonymity told Xinhua. "It also means we were unable to convince people."
The trends showed the BJP sweeping in states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Karnataka that were recently won by Congress party.
Even in national capital Delhi, the BJP is leading on all the seven seats.
The 2019 elections for lower house of the Indian parliament locally known as Lok Sabha spanned over six weeks. The staggered seven-phase polling that began on April 11 concluded on Sunday.
The 2019 elections registered 67.11 percent voter turnout, the highest ever so far in the history of Indian parliamentary elections.
In India's 543-strong parliament, a party or coalition needs at least 272 seats to form government.
During 2014 elections, the BJP bagged 282 seats and Congress party was reduced to opposition with just 44 seats.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to twitter and described his party's spectacular performance as country's victory.
"Together we grow. Together we prosper. Together we will build a strong and inclusive India. India wins yet again! Vijayi Bharat (Victorious India)," Modi wrote on Twitter.
Exit polls have indicated that the BJP will get a comfortable majority. Twelve of 14 exit polls predicted that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will get full majority with seats ranging from 282 to 365.
However, in the past, exit polls have proved to be wrong many times.
Reports pouring in from the BJP offices across India say the party supporters have started celebrations by setting off firecrackers, beating drums and dancing, besides distributing sweets.
The main opposition alliance, which is headed by the Congress party, has concede their defeat.
