BJP Surges In Bengal, TVK Takes Big Lead In Tamil Nadu, NDA Ahead In Assam, Show Latest Trends

Here are the top 10 points in this big story:

1. The BJP has crossed the majority mark of 148 in Bengal, according to the latest leads, as the counting of votes began this morning. Actor Vijay's newcomer party, TVK, has also taken a lead in Tamil Nadu, while the Congress-led UDF is currently ahead in Kerala. In Assam, the BJP-led alliance has surged ahead, and in Puducherry, Chief Minister N Rangasamy's AINRC is leading, as per the latest trends.
2. For the BJP, West Bengal remains the real prize and the result of a cliffhanger of a decade-long tussle with Mamata Banerjee, one of the strongest opposition chief ministers in the country. From SIR to corruption, infiltration, cultural identity and fish, the election issues have woven a flamboyant tapestry, the dark tints dominating. While one exit poll has bowed out, most others have predicted a BJP victory. Exit polls, though, are not results. 
3. The contest in the other Opposition-ruled state, Tamil Nadu, could lead to a second straight win for the DMK-Congress combine, going by exit polls. It is, however, also possible that Vijay's TVK plays a lead role with over 30 per cent vote share. 
4. A victory in Tamil Nadu is crucial for the Congress, which is struggling to preserve its footprint across the states. The party, though, may not have any role in governance, as Chief Minister MK Stalin had made amply clear ahead of the election.
5. The Congress, though, is hoping to gain Kerala, which had turned its back on its decades-old revolving door system the last time, giving a second straight win to the Left government led by Pinarayi Vijayan. 
6. The election in the southern state is being seen as a referendum on the leadership of Vijayan and a defeat for the Left, will, for the first time since 1977, push it out of power across the country. The party has already lost the two states it once controlled -- Bengal and Tripura. 
7. In Assam, despite a consensus about a possible third term for the BJP and a second term at the top post for Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the real test will be whether the party achieves a majority on its own in the state assembly. The BJP won the 2016 and 2021 polls in alliance with the Asom Gana Parishad.
8. For the Congress and its state chief Gaurav Gogoi, this will be a huge test. The run-up to the election has been dominated by BJP allegations of "ISI-backing" against Gogoi and Congress counter-allegations of corruption against Himanta Sarma.
9. The NDA led by Chief Minister N Rangasamy's AINRC is hoping for a second straight term in Puducherry. Vijay's TVK, which set up multi-cornered contests in many of the UT's 30 seats, could queer the pitch, though. 
10. Counting is also being held today for seven by-polls across five states -- Umreth in Gujarat, Bagalkot and Davanagere South in Karnataka, Rahuri and Baramati in Maharashtra, Koridang in Nagaland, and Dharmanagar in Tripura.