Congress feeling dejected as trends not in line with expectations

THE Congress on Thursday (23) said it was feeling dejected as trends are not in line with the expectation of the party.

"Congress party is feeling dejected and the trends are not in line with the expectations of the party. I would not jump to the results till complete counting has taken place," Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill told reporters, reported news agency PTI.

"If they (trends) hold, then Congress needs to introspect as to why its campaign failed to resonate with the people of the country," he said.

Echoing similar sentiments, Salman Soz, a Congress spokesperson, told Reuters: "It's obviously not in our favour at all. We need to wait for the full results but right now it doesn't look good."

On Wednesday (22), just days after exit polls were announced, Rajastan chief minister Ashok Gehlot said the Congress would accept Lok Sabha election results with "humility."

"Whatever the results, we will accept them with humility," he had said.

Riding on a massive Modi wave sweeping through most parts of India, the BJP was set to return to power Thursday as it led in 292 seats while the Congress trailed far behind with 50, according to trends released by the Election Commission for all 542 seats that went to polls.

If the trends stay until final results, the BJP would have improved on its 2014 performance when it had won 282 seats on its own in the 543-member Lok Sabha.

Adding the seats won by its allies, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance could win 343 seats, up from 336 in 2014.