Dismissing the exit poll predictions, which said the BJP would come to power in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed confidence in her party, the TMC, winning more than 226 of 294 assembly seats in the state.
In a video message, she questioned the neutrality of the exit polls, claiming that the pollsters merely aired the figures at the BJP's instructions to demoralise TMC workers.
She claimed that the BJP directed the pollsters to fabricate the numbers and added that if the real figures are released, the stock markets would stumble.
She urged TMC workers to keep a close watch during the vote counting and added that she herself would guard EVM strongrooms if need be.
In West Bengal, while most exit polls predicted a BJP win, two pollsters—People's Pulse and Janmat— projected a comfortable victory for the TMC.
People's Pulse estimated 177-187 seats for the TMC, 95-110 for the BJP, 0-1 for the Left Front and 1-3 for the Congress. Janmat projected 195-205 seats for the TMC, 80-90 for the BJP alliance, and 1-3 for the Congress.
Most other pollsters, however, gave the BJP an edge. Matrize projected 146-161 seats for the BJP and 125-140 for the TMC, while P-Marq forecast 150-175 for the BJP and 118-138 for the TMC.
Poll Diary estimated 142-171 seats for the BJP, 99-127 for the TMC and 3-5 for the Congress. Praja Poll predicted a strong BJP performance, projecting 178-208 seats for the party, while estimating 85-110 seats for the TMC.
Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha member Derek O'Brien pointed out that several exit polls had missed the mark during the last West Bengal assembly elections.
"Credibility of exit polls? Bengal polls 2021. How off the mark were the predictions from the final results," he said, sharing data from three exit polls that had forecast a close contest between the TMC and the BJP. The TMC eventually secured a decisive victory.
The party's former Rajya Sabha member Saket Gokhale also weighed in, saying that while exit polls often suggest a "close contest" in West Bengal, electoral mandates in the state have historically been decisive.
"Exit polls generally play it safe by calling it a 'close contest' in Bengal. Except that mandates in Bengal are never 'close'. They're always decisive," Gokhale said in a post on X.
"No reliable exit poll (if such things exist) is predicting a thumping 180+ 'BJP wave'. My claim on record: TMC will form the government on May 4 in Bengal with a massive mandate," he added.
