When exit polls on Delhi civic election wrote off BJP's fightback

Exit polls missed the mark on few counts with the Aam Aadmi Party belying their predictions and failing to cross the 150-mark, while the Bharatiya Janata Party winning more than 100 seats in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi poll results declared on Wednesday.

IMAGE: A view of BJP office amid the declaration of the results of the MCD polls, in New Delhi, December 7, 2022. Photograph: ANI Photo

The AAP bagged 134 of the 250 wards on which votes were polled on Sunday.

The BJP that was written off by the exit polls put up a spirited fight winning 104 wards.

The exit polls, however, got it right in case of Congress that won 9 seats, matching the predictions that the party will not touch double digit.

The exit polls on Monday had predicted a clear win for the Aam Aadmi Party in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi polls and an end to the BJP's 15-year rule at the civic body.

The AAP won as predicted and the BJP lost, yet the numbers of wards won by them varied widely from those foretold by the exit polls.

The Aaj Tak-Axis My India survey had showed that the AAP would win 149-171 municipal wards, while the BJP was predicted to win 69-91 wards.

The survey had given 3-7 wards to the Congress and 5-9 to others including Independents and smaller parties.

Only 3 Independents managed to win the MCD polls.

The Times now-ETG survey remained closest to the poll results as it had predicted 146-156 wards to the AAP, 84-94 wards to the BJP, 6-10 to the Congress, and 0-4 to others.

The News X exit poll had given AAP 150-175 and BJP 70-92 wards.

It had predicted victory of the Congress on 4-7 municipal wards.

The loss of BJP also ended its 15-year rule of the civic body in the national capital.

The party had won 181 of the total 270 municipal wards in the 2017 civic body polls, trouncing the AAP and the Congress. The AAP then had won 48 wards and the Congress 30.

Earlier this year, the three municipal corporations in Delhi were unified by the Centre into a sole MCD having 250 wards.

The total number of wards was 272 under the three corporations.

Both the AAP and the BJP had fielded 250 candidates, while the Congress contested 247 seats in the MCD polls.

The independent candidates numbered 382. The BSP had fielded 132 candidates, NCP 26, Janata Dal, United, 22, and AIMIM, 15.