The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance are leading together in Maharashtra and set to return to power. However, Haryana could be a cliffhanger with no clear majority for either the BJP or the Congress. The Jannayak Janata Party, which is significantly leading in 11 seats, has emerged as a kingmaker.
The counting of votes began at 8 in the morning amid tight security.
A majority of exit polls results had shown the saffron party in a commanding position, with some even predicting over 200 seats for the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance in Maharashtra.
The India-Today Axis My India exit poll results for Haryana, however, predicted a hung assembly in the state. The Congress party's dry spell is expected to continue.
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Here are the live updates:
9:13 PM: AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi says: "It is a wake up call for BJP, you can't win on PM Modi's popularity every time. Despite the fact that PM conducted 12-15 rallies in Haryana, they did not get the expected results. So things are changing."
8:05 PM: "For the first time in 50 years, a chief minister completed a full term in Maharashtra; political stability is must for a state like this", says PM Modi. "We'll work even harder in both states for the welfare of the people," he added.
7:56 PM: Thanking Indian citizens for the 'gift' of the assembly election results, PM Modi says, "In states where BJP government is there, development projects of both the state government and centre go more smoothly and such states prosper because of this double benefit."
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7:53 PM: "The political pundits who are analysing today's election results, Haryana in itself is an exceptional win since these days there have been less instances of winning again after completing a 5 year term," says PM Modi.
7:44 PM: PM Modi says both Haryana and Maharashtra's voters have blessed the BJP before Diwali.
7:37 PM: Amit Shah claims BJP will form government in both Haryana and Maharashtra. Addressing party workers at the BJP headquarters he said, "We did not have a traditional stronghold in these two states. BJP could not install CMs in Haryana and Maharashtra. But after 2014, when Narendra Modi came to power with a clear majority, there were elections in these two states and we formed governments in both."
7:31 PM: Home Minister Amit Shah addresses party workers at BJP headquarters and thanked the people of Maharashtra and Haryana.
7:28 PM: PM Modi arrives at BJP headquarters in New Delhi and shows victory sign after being received by Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP Working President J P Nadda.
7:27 PM: PM Modi expresses gratitude to Haryana voters as the BJP has won 33 seats and is leading in seven in the 90-seat assembly. The PM said, "I thank the people of Haryana for blessing us. We will continue to work with the same zeal and dedication for the state’s progress."
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7:18 PM: Congress' Mumbai candidates Aslam Sheikh, Varsha Gaikwad and Amin Patel retained their Malad West, Dharavi and Mumbadevi constituencies, respectively. Besides, party nominee Zeeshan Siddique wrested the Bandra East seat from the Shiv Sena.
7:16 PM: Riven by infighting ahead of the Maharashtra assembly polls, the Congress only managed to win four assembly seats out of the 29 seats it contested in Mumbai. In 2014, the party had won five seats in Mumbai, which has 36 assembly segments.
7:12 PM: Former minister and Mumbai Congress heavyweight Naseem Khan lost his Chandivali seat by a margin of only 409 votes.
6:57 PM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said the NDA is "humbled" to have got the people's support in Maharashtra yet again. He tweeted: "Our work towards Maharashtra's progress continues! I salute each and every karyakarta (worker) of the BJP, Shiv Sena and our entire NDA family for their hardwork."
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6:14 PM: Congress leader Kuldeep Bishnoi won the Adampur assembly constituency defeating TikTok star and Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Sonali Phogat by a margin of over 29471 votes.
The three-time sitting legislator from the constituency and son of former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal defeated Phogat, who is a well-known personality on TikTok mobile app.
6:13 PM: BJP president Amit Shah indicated on Thursday that his party will stake claim to form the next government in Haryana after the assembly election results threw up a hung verdict.
"The (Manohar Lal) Khattar government in Haryana has made every effort for people's welfare under the central leadership of (Narendra) Modi. I thank people for making the BJP the single-largest party and giving it another opportunity to serve them," Shah said in a tweet.
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6:11 PM: Reacting to the Maharashtra Assembly election results positively, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari expressed gratitude to the people of Maharashtra. "I extend my greetings to CM Devendra Fadnavis, BJP President Amit Shah and PM Narendra Modi for this electoral victory," he said.
5:45 PM: Haryana Chief Minister and BJP leader Manohar Lal Khattar to meet Governor Satyadev Narayan Arya later this evening to stake his claim to form the government in the state, ANI quoted sources as saying.
5:30 PM: Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde defeats Maharashtra Women and Child Welfare Minister Pankaja Munde of the BJP by a margin of 30,768 votes.
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5:21 PM: The vote share of the ruling BJP fell by a massive 22 per cent in the Haryana Assembly polls on Thursday, after the party secured over 58 per cent votes in the state in the Lok Sabha polls held in April-May and won all the 10 seats.
5:13 PM: NCP leader Ajit Pawar wins Baramati Assembly seat in Maharashtra for the sixth term.
5:11 PM: Fadnavis has claimed that 15 independent MLAs have contacted him and said they are ready to support BJP. He said most of these independents are BJP or Shiv Sena rebels.
5:05 PM: As per the latest trends and results, the BJP had won or was leading on 101 seats and Sena on 57 seats out of the total 288.
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5:01 PM: Fadnavis says NCP has not gained many seats in the polls and that people have given BJP a clear mandate in Maharashtra.
5:00 PM: Former Haryana chief minister and senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda defeated ruling BJP candidate Satish Nandal by a huge margin on Thursday.
4:49 PM: Clear mandate by voters, next government will be of BJP-Sena grand alliance, says Devendra Fadnavis.
4:44 PM: Shiv Sena contested less seats on BJP's request, we can't be so accommodating always, says Uddhav Thackeray.
4:28 PM: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has said that seat-sharing deal did not happen as it was discussed. On the question of who will be next Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Thackeray said," It is an important question."
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4:23 PM: BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya blamed shortcomings in the "election management" to his party's middling performance in the Haryana assembly elections.
4:04 PM: PM Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister and BJP President Amit Shah will meet and address the party workers at the party headquarters this evening in New Delhi.
4:01 PM: JJP leader Dushyant Chautala said he will hold a meeting with his party MLAs on Friday and decide the future course of action. He said: "I believe Haryana wants a change and JJP will bring it."
3:56 PM: Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray wins from Worli Assembly seat by over 70,000 votes, defeats NCP's Suresh Mane.
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3:49 PM: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has said that she is happy with results in both Haryana and Maharashtra. "We are also happy about the fact that here in UP our vote percentage has increased," she said.
3:37 PM: Congress leader Deepender Singh Hooda has alleged that BJP is trying to "pressurise" independent candidates to help them form their government. He also appealed to non-BJP parties to form a coalition government in Haryana.
"BJP is trying to pressurise independent candidates as most of them want to join us. It cannot be accepted in a democracy. Independent candidates should be able to freely choose the party whom they wish to support. I want to appeal to EC about it through media," he told reporters.
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3:11 PM: Senior Congress leader Kuldeep Bishnoi has defeated BJP candidate and TikTok star Sonali Phogat from his stronghold Adampur assembly constituency in Haryana's Hisar district.
3:01 PM: BJP has so far won 10 seats and is leading in 91 seats while Shiv Sena has won 8 and is leading in 51 seats. Congress, on the other hand, has won 4 seats and is leading in 39 seats. NCP won has also won 4 seats and is leading in 51 constituencies.
2:29 PM: BJP leader and Maharashtra cabinet minister Pankaja Munde on Thursday accepted her defeat from Parli assembly seat at the hands of her cousin and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde.
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2:27 PM: Shiv Sena's Aaditya Thackeray has won from the Worli assembly constituency.
2:25 PM: "BJP is trying to pressurize independent candidates as most of them want to join us. It can't be accepted in a democracy. Independent candidates should be able to freely choose the party whom they wish to support.I want to appeal to EC about it through media," says Congress leader DS Hooda.
2:24 PM: As per the official trends by the Election Commission, BJP is leading on 39 seats, Congress on 33 seats out of the total 90 seats in the state.
1:51 PM: Shiv Sena's Ajay Choudhary wins Shivadi seat by a margin of 39,337 votes.
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1:44 PM: Congress leader Randeep Surjewala loses from Kaithal, Haryana.
1:41 PM: NCP chief Sharad Pawar said the Opposition has worked hard and all members of Congress-NCP and allies have delivered and given their best.
"I thank them all. Power comes, power goes but it is important to remain committed to a cause and we thank people for the love they showed." He said those defected NCP have not been accepted by the people.
1:28 PM: As the trends hinted at a possible hung assembly in Haryana, Former CM B S Hooda said the time has come that Congress, JJP, INLD and independents should come together to form a strong government.
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1:25 PM: The ruling BJP on Thursday retained both Dharamshala and Pachhad seats in Himachal Pradesh where bypolls were held earlier this week.
1:23 PM: Captain Abhimanyu, Haryana Finance Minister and BJP candidate from Narnaund constituency in Hisar district said that as per the latest trends, "I feel that public mandate is in favour of JJP. We respect public mandate."
1:13 PM: BJP's Haryana chief Subhash Barala offers to resign as trends show BJP struggling to retain power in the state. Sources told Outlook that no decision has been taken so far.
As the counting was in progress, Barala had left the counting centre in between, realising he is losing from Tohana.
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1:12 PM: BJP's star candidate Babita Phogat trails by 1410 votes in Dadri assembly constituency.
1:09 PM: As Haryana is headed for a hung assembly as per the latest trends, the BJP high command is understood to have summoned Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar to Delhi.
1:08 PM: Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda will reach Delhi Thursday evening and hold meetings with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and top party leaders to strategise on forming the government in the state, sources said.
1:01 PM: Both the BJP and Congress are leading in 35 seats in Harayana in a neck-and-neck fight, according to EC. JJP, which is leading in 10 seats, can emerge as a kingmaker.
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12:59 PM: As the trends emerged in Haryana, the BJP started to woo JJP leader Dushyant Chautala who may emerge as kingmaker and crucial man in the government formation. BJP's Haryana in-charge and party General Secretary Anil Jain lauded the JJP founder, saying "Dushyant Chautala has emerged as a seasoned leader and he is taking forward Devi Lal's legacy."
12:50 PM: As BJP leads in more than 100 seats in Maharashtra, workers celebrate at the party office in Mumbai.
12:37 PM: Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala is now leading from the Kaithal Assembly constituency after the fifth round of counting.
12:35 PM: Maharashtra Minister and BJP candidate Pankaja Munde is trailing with 34,006 votes whereas her cousin and NCP candidate Dhananjay Munde is leading with 43,634 votes in Parli constituency.
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12:17 PM: Bharatiya Janata Party's Babita Phogat leading with a margin of 2387 votes in Dadri assembly constituency.
12:14 PM: Congress candidate in Dharmshala Vijay Inder Karan lost his security deposit in the bypoll as he failed to get even the required one-sixth of the total votes polled. Karan could get only 8,212 votes out of the valid 5,2485 votes polled.
12:12 PM: State Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said his party's priority is to keep the BJP "out of power" in Maharashtra.
12:10 PM: On reports of being offered CM post by Congress, Jannayak Janata Party Chief Dushyant Chautala said he has not had any discussion with anyone yet. "The decision will be taken only after the final numbers are out," he said.
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11:58 AM: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said his party will go ahead with the alliance with the BJP. "We have agreed upon a 50-50 formula. Numbers are not that bad, it happens sometimes," Raut said.
11:55 AM: Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said that apart from winning the Haryana and Maharashtra Assembly elections, the BJP will win in upcoming Jharkhand and Delhi polls too.
11:49 AM: Haryana Congress chief Kumari Selja said people of Haryana have rejected the ruling BJP and "embraced a new dawn of justice".
11:46 AM: Seven Haryana ministers, including Ram Bilas Sharma and Capt Abhimanyu, and State BJP chief Subhash Barala were trailing, as per early Election Commission trends.
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11:45 AM: Rohit Pawar, the grand nephew of NCP chief Sharad Pawar, leading over BJP minister Ram Shinde by 7,211 votes in Karjat-Jamkhed.
11:37 AM: JJP workers celebrate after the trends showed party leading in 11 seats in Haryana.
11:30 AM: Former Maharashtra chief minister and senior Congress leader Ashok Chavan leading over Shrinivas Gorthekar of the BJP by 16,900 votes in Bhokar.
11:28 AM: Congress Interim President Sonia Gandhi has talked to senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda and taken stock of the latest political situation, ANI reported.
11:25 AM: BJP leading in 101 constituencies, Shiv Sena leading in 64 constituencies, NCP leading in 52 constituencies and Congress in 39 in Maharashtra.
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11:21 AM: BJP crosses 100 mark in Maharashtra, while Shiv Sena leads in 64 seats. The allies have together crossed the majority mark.
11:18 AM: Bharatiya Janata Party wins Dharamsala assembly seat bypolls for which were held on October 21.
11:08 AM: Jannayak Janata Party is leading with 11 seats in Haryana where the contest between BJP and Congress is neck to neck. The JJP can emerge as a kingmaker in the state where BJP is looking for retaining power and Congress eyeing for another Karnataka-style government formation.
11:06 AM: Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala was trailing by a margin of 2,423 votes over the ruling BJP's Leela Ram.
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10:51 AM: JJP leader Dushyant Chautala leading in Haryana's Uchana Kalan assembly seat.
10:48 AM: Trends in 283 of 288 Assembly seats available show BJP leading in 99, Shiv Sena in 61, Congress in 41, NCP in 49 and Independents in 15 seats.
10:43 AM: Former Haryana Chief Minister and Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda is leading over his nearest BJP rival Satish Nandal by a margin of 8,505 votes.
10:35 AM: Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray establishes a comfortable lead of 11,893 votes over NCP's Suresh Mane in Worli Assembly seat
10:34 AM: Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar contesting from Karnal assembly seat is leading with 14,030 votes, after third round of counting.
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10:28 AM: NCP leader Ajit Pawar ahead of his BJP rival Gopinath Padalkar by 18,000 votes in Baramati seat of Pune.
10:25 AM: After second round of counting, Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis contesting from Nagpur South-West Constituency is leading.
10:24 AM: After first round of counting, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar is leading from Karnal assembly seat with 4588 votes.
10:15 AM: The trends show a close contest between BJP and Congress in Haryana. After BJP raced ahead in early trends, Congress has picked up the pace and is leading in 31 seats while the saffron party is leading in 40 seats.
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10:10 AM: Election Commission official trends for Maharashtra Assembly Elections show BJP leading in 75 constituencies, Shiv Sena leading in 47 constituencies, NCP leading in 43 constituencies and Others in 65.
9:59 AM: Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda at a counting centre in Rohtak.
9:52 AM: Bharatiya Janata Party's Babita Phogat leading in Dadri assembly constituency.
9:37 AM: Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda confident of a win, says Congress will form the government.
9:27 AM: BJP leader and Maharashtra Housing Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil leads in Shirdi Assembly seat by 4,844 votes over his nearest Congress rival Suresh Thorat.
9:21 AM: Haryana Finance Minister Capt Abhimanyu was trailing from his Narnaund constituency in Hisar district to Jannnayak Janta Party candidate, as per early trends.
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9:20 AM: BJP candidate Udayanraje Bhosale trailing behind NCP nominee Shriniwas Patil by 1,089 votes in Maharashtra's Satara Lok Sabha seat bypoll in first round of counting.
9:15 AM: Shiv Sena's Aaditya Thackeray establishes a comfortable lead in Worli assembly constituency where he is making his electoral debut. He is pitted against NCP's Suresh Mane and has established a lead of over 7,000 votes as per the early trends.
9:09 AM: Former BJP MLA Anil Gote, the Independent candidate from Maharashtra's Dhule Assembly seat, spent the night outside the EVM strong room in his segment, claiming he was guarding the facility to avoid any misuse of the voting machines ahead of counting on Thursday, PTI reported.
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9:06 AM: Trends in 25 Assembly seats available show BJP leading in 12 seats, Shiv Sena in 6, Congress and NCP each in 3, IANS reported.
8:55 AM: As per official trends from Election Commission, BJP leading in 10 constituencies, Shiv Sena leading in 5 constituencies, Congress leading in 3 constituencies and NCP leading in 2 constituencies
8:52 AM: The BJP-Shiv Sena candidates were leading in over 30 constituencies, while the opposition Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) nominees in around 12 constituencies.
8:44 AM: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and his predecessor Bhupinder Singh Hooda of the Congress are among those who were leading from their respective constituencies, as per the early trends available.
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8:32 AM:
8:30 AM: Early trends indicate Shiv Sena and BJP alliance leading in Maharashtra.
8:26 AM: Counting of votes for Chitrakot Assembly bypoll in Chhattisgarh began is underway amid tight security.
8:22 AM: Vote count for two Assembly seats of Himachal Pradesh began on Thursday, election officials said. Nearly 68 per cent of the 156,624 voters exercised their franchise on Monday for the by-elections to the Dharamsala and Pachhad seats in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled state.
8:17 AM: Early trends show BJP leading in both Haryana and Maharashtra.
8:12 AM: Jannayak Janata Party leader Dushyant Chautala says neither the BJP nor the Congress will cross the 40 seats. "The kingmaker will be JJP," he told reporters.
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8:10 AM: The counting of votes for both the assemblies is being held under a heavy security arrangement.
8:05 AM: Counting of votes begins, starting with the postal ballots, at Colaba counting centre in Mumbai.
8:00 AM: Counting of votes has begun for Maharashtra and Haryana Assemblies amid tight security.
7:54 AM: All set for counting of votes.
7:05 AM: Counting of votes for the elections to the Maharashtra and Haryana assemblies to begin at 8 AM.
7:04 AM: Preparations are underway at the counting center for Nagpur South-West constituency, ahead of counting of votes.
PM #Modi says both states' voters have blessed them before big Diwali.
