The India Today-Axis Exit Poll changed its prediction for the Sikkim Lok Sabha seat on Monday, May 20. The vote percentage received by each party was also deleted from the website.
First, the pollster gave the Sikkim seat to the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF). However, it was predicted that SDF would get 44 per cent of the votes, while Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) was predicted to get 46 per cent votes.
On Monday afternoon, the vote share for the Sikkim seat was deleted from the India Today website. Moreover, a disclaimer was put underlining that the margin between two parties — SKM and SKF (which is probably a typographical error for SDF) — is less and that the former has the edge over the latter.
It is worth noting that while the exit polls were televised on India Today TV, SKM was shown to be winning one seat, something that was decidedly the opposite of what the Axis My India website said. It is also interesting that the primetime show did not list SDF as a candidate at all, instead, clubbed in “others”.
The Sikkim seat has been a stronghold of the SDF since 1996. The party has fielded Dek Bahadur Katyal, replacing sitting MP Prem Das Rai. SKM led by former state minister PS Golay is a breakout faction of SDF and has fielded Indrahand Subba.
The constituency voted during the first phase of the Lok Sabha Polls on April 11.