Congress stages a comeback, set to touch three-figure mark after 2009 elections
The party had put up a dismal show in the last two elections, winning just 44 seats in 2014 and 52 in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls
After facing ignominious defeat in 2014 and 2019, the Congress has staged a comeback in these Lok Sabha elections and is on course to win 100 Lok Sabha seats.
The party had won just 44 seats in 2014 and 52 constituencies in the 2019 elections. Its last three-figure tally came in 2009 when the party won 206 seats that paved the way for UPA 2.0 led by Manmohan Singh at the Centre.
At 2.30 pm the Congress was ahead in 97 seats and the party-led INDIA bloc, set up in June 2023 to take on the BJP-led NDA, was ahead in 234 seats. The NDA was leading in 290 seats with the BJP taking lead in 243. The ruling party, which won 303 seats last time, hasn’t yet touched the majority mark of 272 on its own.
In 2014 the Congress, then led by Rahul Gandhi, suffered a humiliating defeat amid 'Modi wave' and lost a massive 162 seats, dropping nearly 9.3 per cent of the vote share.
The 2014 election also witnessed the emergence of the Hindi heartland - the belt of Hindi-speaking states from Gujarat and Rajasthan in the west to Bihar and Jharkhand in the east, and down to Madhya Pradesh. The BJP swept these states 10 years ago en route to winning 336 of the nation’s 543 seats.
On its own the saffron party won 282 seats. The NDA won 73 seats in UP, 41 in Maharashtra, 31 in Bihar, and 27 in Madhya Pradesh. It also swept Gujarat's 26, Rajasthan's 25, Delhi's seven, Himachal Pradesh's four, and Uttarakhand's five seats, and won 12 of Jharkhand's 14, 10 of Chhattisgarh's 11, and seven of Haryana's 10 seats.
The Congress won just two seats in UP - the party strongholds of Amethi and Raebareli. The party picked up only six seats across the rest of the belt, with its UPA partners contributing a further six.
Five years on the BJP eked further ahead, winning 303 seats on its own and 353 with allies. The Congress, on the other hand, could marginally improve its 2014 tally to 52 in 2019.
Once again the Hindi belt was key to beating the Congress’ hopes, with the BJP picking up 74 in UP, 39 in Bihar, and 28 in Madhya Pradesh. It also swept Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi, winning 77 seats from these states. Adding Chhattisgarh's 9 and Jharkhand's 11, the BJP amassed 238 seats from this belt.