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ELECTIONS '96

Exit Poll: CPI-M holds out, Congress wiped out in West Bengal

With help from the Trinamul Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party opens its account in the West Bengal, bastion of the Communist Party of India-Marxist, claims the Doordarshan Exit Poll.

The Congress also suffers from its recent split when the popular Mamata Banerjee formed the Trinamul Congress and tied up with the BJP.

The CPI-M is expected to win 32 of the total 42 seats, one less than the last time. Its voting share is likely to drop by 9 per cent to 45 per cent.

The Trinamul Congress is expected to send eight members to the Lok Sabha. The total votes garnered by others (which also includes Independents) is reckoned to shoot up 18 per cent to 22 per cent.

The BJP will return its first MPs from West Bengal with two victories. Its vote share will be 10 per cent, a gain of three per cent.

The Congress receives a drubbing, failing to win a single seat and losing the nine it holds so far. Its vote share drops by a huge 17 per cent to a mere 23 per cent.

Elections '98

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