Air Strike, interim budget will benefit BJP in Lok Sabha polls: Psephologist Bhawesh Jha

Psephologist Bhawesh Jha on Sunday opined that air strike carried out by the Indian Air Force in Pakistan and the interim budget presented by the central government will benefit the BJP in upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Jha told ANI, "Incidents like budget, air strike will work in the favour of the BJP. People used to say nine phases are too hectic so this time they have made it seven. People will vote for their choice."

Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday announced the dates for the 17th Lok Sabha elections, which will be held in seven phases and the first phase of polling will take place on April 11.

Announcing the election schedule and related measures, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sunil Arora said: "The Election Commission of India has attempted every comprehensive preparation for the conduct of election for the 17th Lok Sabha, which is free, fair, inclusive, ethical, participatory and also festive," he said.

CEC also stated that the examination schedule of all state boards and factors like festivals, harvest season, etc were taken into consideration while fixing poll dates.

He also informed that the final electoral roles have a total number of voters in the vicinity of 900 million.

The tenure of the 16th Lok Sabha expires on June 3.

The Lok Sabha elections in India are the biggest democratic exercise in the world. Indian electorates will be voting to elect Member of Parliament (MP) for 543 Lok Sabha constituencies.

-ANI