The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Odisha is leading in 47 of the 147 assembly seats, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is nearing the halfway mark with leads in 71 seats, early trends from the Election Commission of India indicate.

About three hours after the counting of votes began at 8 am, the Indian National Congress (INC) was leading in 13 seats, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) – CPI(M) was ahead in one seat.

Voting for the assembly elections in Odisha concluded on June 1, along with the seventh and final phase of the Lok Sabha polls.

Odisha is witnessing a stiff fight as the BJP seeks to penetrate the BJD stronghold in both the Assembly and General elections.

According to exit poll predictions, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is expected to double its tally in Odisha in the Lok Sabha elections.

Odisha, with a total of 21 Lok Sabha constituencies and 147 Assembly constituencies, went to polls across four phases: the first phase on May 13, followed by May 20, May 25, and June 1.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the BJD maintained its strong presence by securing 12 out of 21 seats, though this represented a drop from the 20 out of 21 seats it had won in the 2014 Lok Sabha election. The BJP made notable progress by capturing 8 seats in 2019, up from just 1 seat in 2014. The Congress secured 1 seat in the 2019 elections in Odisha, improving from their zero seats in 2014.

In the last Assembly elections in Odisha in 2019, of the 147 seats, the BJD won 112 seats, the BJP won 23, and the Congress won nine seats.

(With ANI input)