Now that the dust has settled and the mandate is clear, a takeaway from the Lok Sabha election results was that the results proved most of the exit poll predictions wrong.
While most exit polls predicted an average of 360 seats for the NDA, the results came as a dampener for the ruling party. Not only did the BJP fail to get the targetted 400 seats, it also failed to get an absolute majority.
While most political analysts and scientists got it wrong, psephologist Yogendra Yadav's prediction came closer to the actual results. The activist and politician had predicted that the BJP may win 240 to 260 seats while the NDA allies may secure another 35 to 45 seats. This could bring NDA’s total seats to 275 to 305, making it just enough to form a government. "While the 400 seats claim was flimsy, for BJP it will be difficult to win even 300 seats," Yadav said in his prediction video.
The BJP's tally was close to what was predicted; 240 out of the 543 seats.
Yogendra Yadav also anticipated the resurgence of the Congress Party, predicting that the party to win 85 to 100 seats. The Congress Party secured 99 seats, proving his calculations right.
Yadav had also forecast that the Congress-led bloc I.N.D.I.A would pose a solid threat to BJP dominance. With the alliance securing 234 seats, this too came true.