BJP, allies to get majority in Bihar polls: Survey

NEW DELHI: BJP and its allies have been predicted to get a majority in the Bihar elections with an opinion poll giving them 125 seats in a House of 243.

The pre-poll survey, conducted by Cicero for India Today channel, gave the JD(U)-led 'grand alliance' 106 in an election that could be "very, very close", according to the agency which conducted the poll.

'Others' have been predicted to get 12. The half-way mark in the Assembly is 122.

In the last elections in 2010, the ruling JD(U) won 115 seats in alliance with BJP, which itself had bagged 94 seats. RJD had won 22 seats, Congress 4 and Lok Jan Shakti party 3.

Today's opinion poll gives JD(U) and its allies a vote share of 40 per cent, which is down by 9.8 per cent vote-wise and 35 seats-wise compared to the last elections. The BJP and its allies have been predicted to get 42 per cent votes, up by more than 18 per cent.

But for the chief ministerial stakes, Nitish Kumar is in the lead followed by BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi and RJD leader Lalu Prasad.