National Democratic Alliance leads(photo\@narendramodi)
The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance crossed the halfway mark of 272 in early trends, but appeared to be falling short of the overwhelming majority forecast by most exit polls, as vote count for the 543 Lok Sabha seats heated up on Tuesday.
Defying predictions, the opposition INDIA bloc was putting up a spirited fight with a strong showing in the bellwether state of Uttar Pradesh.
Early leads show the NDA, which already has one seat in its kitty after the BJP candidate won unopposed in Surat, leading on 289 seats. On the other hand, the INDIA bloc was ahead in 225 seats.