The Indian National Congress has announced that it will not participate in any exit poll programmes to be held after the conclusion of the final phase of the Lok Sabha election on Saturday, June 1.
On Friday, May 31, Congress national spokesperson Pawan Khera said that they will partake in discussions from June 4th, once the counting is complete. “Voters have cast their votes and their verdict has been secured. The results will be out on 4th June. Prior to that, we do not see any reason to indulge in speculation and slugfest for TRP. The Indian National Congress will not participate in the debates on #ExitPolls. The purpose of any debate should be to inform the people. We will happily partake in debates from 4th June onwards,” his statement said.
On June 1, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Odisha, West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Chandigarh will go to polls. The voting will end at 6 pm, following which news channels are allowed to make their exit poll predictions based on the responses of the voters and other insights given by agencies.
Exit polls predict a potential outcome of the polls before the official results are declared, and psephologists and political analysts like Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Kishor have already made their predictions based on ground reports.
The Election Commission of India held the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in seven phases, starting from April 19, and the results will be announced on June 4.