Fractured mandate if polls are held today, says survey

New Delhi, May 22: The voters could give a fractured mandate, is the fear now. A survey by ABP News and AC Neilsen says that if the elections were to be held today the Congress led UPA could get just 136 seats and the NDA may reach 206 seats in Lok Sabha.

However, neither of the alliances may not secure the necessary majority of 272 seats and regional parties would have held the key to the government formation with a tally of 160 plus seats. The Left parties could also be back in the business with the survey giving them 30 plus seats.

The survey predicts a mandate dictated by regional powers.

It says that Narendra Modi is the favoured candidate to lead the country but leads Manmohan Singh only by a bit. The voters are also looked at Rahul Gandhi or Sonia Gandhi as possible candidates.

Modi has 17 percent backing over Manmohan Singh at 16 percent. Modi was at number four during last year's survey (12 percent). Singh was ranked at number one last year (21 percent). Rahul Gandhi's score has dipped from 19 percent to 13 percent this year. Sonia Gandhi is doen at 9 percent from 14 percent last year.

The survey, conducted across 28 cities in April-May, reveals that BJP could get 28 percent of the vote if Lok Sabha elections are held now, while Congress would manage only 20 percent.

Majority of respondents- 57 percent- said the UPA government was the most corrupt government post-independence. This figure was 45 percent last year.

OneIndia News