Bookies betting big on BJP in UP, U'khand, Goa; see AAP win in Punjab
Darpan News Desk IANS, 09 Mar, 2022 05:19 PM
New Delhi, March 9 (IANS) Ahead of the announcement of results of the assembly elections in five states, the bookies who run the satta bazar have put the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the driver's seat in three states -- Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Goa, while they have considered only the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as a formidable contender in Punjab, with no party coming close to it.
While the bookies are betting on the basis of per seat in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, in Goa and Uttarakhand, they are betting on forming the government.
In Punjab, they are giving the AAP 40 paise against a rupee, predicting a possible AAP government in the state.
The bookies have put the Congress in second position, while the Akali Dal has been placed third. The BJP appears nowhere in the bookies' calculation.
"We are talking about 40 paise for the AAP government, Rs 3.50 for the ruling Congress and Rs 25 for the BJP. It is based on our calculations," said a bookie on the condition of anonymity.
As per their calculation, the AAP gets 55 paise for 50 seats and 80 paise for 52 seats. The Congress is being paid 40 paise for 30 seats and Re 1 for 32 seats.
In other words, the AAP is likely to get a maximum of 50 seats and the Congress 30 seats. The Akali Dal gets 50 paise for 12 seats and 75 paise for 13 seats.
"A new wave have entered Punjab. Farmers are supporting the AAP. It was ahead of all others since the beginning. This did not change anywhere," said a bookie.
According to the bookies, the BJP may form the government in Goa and Uttarakhand.
The bookies said in these states, they were not betting on seats but on whether a government is formed or not.
"The BJP is ahead of others in both the states.The cost of forming a BJP government in Goa is 66 paise. The price of the Congress is Rs 1.60 and Rs 10 for an AAP government. In Uttarakhand, we are giving BJP 80 paise and the Congress Rs 1.20 for forming the government," said a bookie.
In Uttar Pradesh, they are betting on seats. Here too, the BJP is ahead of others while the Samajwadi Party is trailing the saffron party.
"The price is Rs 1.20 for 245 seats for the BJP and Rs 1.60 for 135 seats for the SP. These are the final prices which won't change," said a bookie.
The satta bazar prices are showing that the BJP is quite strong in three states while it's only the AAP in Punjab.
After the Model Code of Conduct came into force in the state for the Punjab Vidhan Sabha elections, enforcement teams have seized valuables worth Rs 23.8 crore in violation of code, besides confiscating unaccounted cash till January 12, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Punjab S. Karuna Raju said on Thursday.
Channi expressed regret while participating in a virtual meeting chaired by Prime Minister Modi with Chief Ministers and Lieutenant Governors/Administrators of states and UTs to review the prevailing Covid situation as well as the ongoing vaccination drive.
Unveiling the first set of plans in his Punjab Model with focus on resurrection of Punjab, Sidhu, in the absence of Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and his Cabinet colleagues, told the media here: "Punjab Model is people's model, an effort to give a roadmap to return power to people."
Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said that he "personally" feels that alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in Punjab had cost the BJP heavily.
India on Tuesday recorded 1,68,063 new Covid cases, taking the total tally to 8,21,446. Although the fresh infections were 6.4 per cent less than Monday when the country logged 1,79,723, the weekly positivity rate has climbed to 8.85 per cent and the daily positivity rate has declined to 10.64 per cent. On the other hand, 4,461 Omicron cases were recorded from 28 states.
Delhi reported a 25 per cent surge in Covid-19 cases after recording 19,166 fresh cases. With this, the infection tally has climbed to 15,68,896. Meanwhile, the city has recorded 17 Covid deaths on the second consecutive day, pushing the death toll to 25,177.
