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year rule. Two surveys said TMC is expected to retain power. Meanwhile, one survey predicted a neck-and-neck fight between the parties.

Almost all the surveys showed very few seats for the Indian National Congress, the CPI (M) and the Indian Secular Front.

Buoyed by the survey results, the BJP, which never ruled the state, expressed confidence in forming government with a clear majority, while the TMC rejected the exit poll predictions and said it hopes to retain power with the people’s mandate.

According to Matrize, a survey agency, the BJP is likely to win 146 to 161 seats, while the TMC is projected to secure 125 to 140. Other parties are expected to win 6 to 10 seats.

According to P-Marq, the BJP is likely to win 150 to 175 seats, the TMC 118 to 138, and others 2 to 6 seats.

Chanakya Strategies has predicted 150 to 160 seats for the BJP, with the TMC at 130 to 140 and other parties at 2 to 6 seats.

Praja Poll gave the BJP the highest tally among the exit polls released yesterday, projecting 178 to 208 seats, followed by the TMC with 85 to 110 seats, and others with 0 to 5 seats.

The exit poll conducted by Poll Diary projected 142 to 171 seats for the BJP, while the TMC is expected to win 99 to 127 seats. Other parties are projected to secure five to nine Assembly seats.

On the other end of the spectrum is Janmat Polls, whose data predict that the Trinamool Congress will get a thumping majority for the third straight time. The agency has predicted between 195 and 205 seats for the Mamata Banerjee-led party and 80-90 for the BJP, which is very close to the figures both parties had in the 2021 elections.

Peoples Pulse also predicted the BJP to win 95 to 110 seats and giving the TMC an outright majority of 177 to 187 seats, with other parties winning 1 to 4 seats.

Meanwhile, the JVC Exit Poll predicted a neck-and-neck battle between the duo, giving the BJP 138-159 seats and the TMC 131-152 seats.

Votes will be counted on May 4, and results will be declared the same day.

The Election Commission’s contentious Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has further complicated predictions. While the TMC used the exercise -- which led to the deletion of 91 lakh voters -- to attack the BJP, its impact on the ground remains unclear.

Exit polls in India have a mixed record and can be inaccurate.

In 2021, several exit polls not only failed to capture the TMC’s dominant showing of 215 seats in the 294-member assembly, but some also gave the BJP an outright majority. The BJP won 77 seats, well short of the 148-seat majority mark.

In every assembly polls since the TMC first came to power in 2011, the party has increased its seat tally, from 184 in 2011 to 215 in 2021. In the 2021 election, the BJP won 77 seats.

After the polling ended, Suvendu Adhikari, leader of the opposition and BJP candidate from Nandigram and Bhabanipur, expressed confidence that the party would form government with around 180 seats.

Shashi Panja, TMC leader and a former Mamata-led cabinet member, rejected the exit poll projections.

“We’ve seen exit polls like this before. But when the party emerged victorious, did anyone apologise? This keeps happening,” she said.

“The answer to all this will be known on May 4,” she added.

TMC spokesperson Arup Chakraborty also expressed confidence that the party would win the polls.

Apart from West Bengal, assembly elections were held in three states -- Assam, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu -- as well as the Union Territory of Puducherry. Results will be announced on May 4.

Exit polls in these regions projected a BJP return in Assam and Puducherry. In Tamil Nadu, the DMK-led alliance, headed by former chief minister MK Stalin, is predicted to return to power.

In Kerala, the Congress-led United Democratic Front is tipped to return to power after 10 years, defeating the Left Democratic Front led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Most surveys projected only a few seats for the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in the state.