Turning exit poll prediction on its head, the BJP is leading in 49 of Haryana’s 90 seats. The Congress is trailing with 34, but is keeping its chin up, declaring it can still win. 
Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party, which had high hopes of carving out a niche in Haryana, boosted by  its victories in neighbouring Delhi and Punjab, has failed to open its account. The party, however, had some success in Jammu and Kashmir, winning the Doda seat.
In Jammu and Kashmir, which is electing its government after a decade, the National Conference and Congress alliance is ahead in 49 of the 90 seats – ahead of the halfway mark of 46. The BJP is ahead in 27 seats – almost all of them in Jammu.  
The National Conference is ahead on 44 of Kashmir’s 47 seats, posting a steller performance not only in Kashmir Valley but also Pir Panjal and Chenab valleys.  
The Congress, which was hoping for a thumping victory in Haryana, an outcome also predicted by exit polls, has failed to do well in Jammu and Kashmir as well. The party is leading in only eight of the J&K’s 90 seats, that too in Kashmir Valley, riding the pro-National Conference wave. In Jammu, where it was expected to go toe to toe with the BJP, it has failed to stay ahead even on one.  
The other big setback in the Valley has been reserved for Mehbooba Mufti’s Peoples Democratic Party, which exit polls predicted would play kingmaker in a split verdict. The party, expected to win at least eight seats, is leading only on two. 
J&K’s smaller parties and Independents, many of them backed by the BJP, are leading on 9 seats. The BJP’s state leaders had said their tally would add to the party’s score and combined with the five MLAs nominated by the Governor, the party would be able to form government. 
While the Congress is yet to accept its setback in Haryana, jubilant BJP leaders have attributed it to the party’s infighting and its treatment of Dalits and backward castes, pointing to its solid backing of Bhupinder Hooda instead of Kumari Selja. 
What also went in BJP’s favour was the unexpected turn in terms of Jat votes. The Jats and the farmer community, said to be upset over the farm laws, the treatment of women wrestlers after sexual harassment allegations against a BJP MP and the Agniveer scheme, were expected to vote for the Congress.
But the BJP is leading on 70 per cent of Jat-dominated seats – 17 out of 33. The Congress is ahead only on 14. The BJP is ahead in all seven bellwether seats and is doing well even on seats dominated by Scheduled Castes, leading in nine of 17 seats. 

Haryana has scripted history by giving a third consecutive term to the BJP in the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the BJP headquarters today while congratulating party workers for the unprecedented victory.  It was accompanied by a vitriolic attack on the Congress, which he called, among other things, a “parasitic party” that wins only when powered by its alliance partner. 

“In J&K, its ally was saying they would face defeat because of the Congress. In Lok Sabha as well, they won most of the seats because of their alliance partners. In some states, many alliance partners suffered because of Congress. They swallow them and destroy them in the state,” PM Modi said, setting the tone for the next round of election in Maharashtra and Jharkhand — states where the Congress is fighting as part of alliances.  

“Haryana was formed in 1966… 13 elections took place in Haryana, till now and in 10 polls, people have changed the government,” he said.  “After five years and in the last three elections, it has not happened. It is the first time that a government has managed to get two terms and win a third one. The people of Haryana not only made us win but gave us more seats and more vote share. They wholeheartedly voted for us,” he added. 

The BJP is set to win a historic third straight term in Haryana in an election that many expected it to lose in face of massive anti-incumbency, anger among farmers and Jats, and displeasure about the Agniveer scheme. The party is leading in 48 of the state’s 90 seats, the Congress stands at 37 – a long way from the majority mark of 46.

The greater part of the Prime Minister’s speech was directed at the Congress – a party he said was against the youth and the army, is anti-India, “tries to ruin the reputation of every institution Indians are proud of”.

“Before the Lok Sabha election, the Congress, their alliance partners and Urban Naxal friends went to the court several times to disrupt the functioning of these institutions. They question their neutrality, their independence. They have been doing that a lot,’ he added. 

The massive victory in Haryana and a good performance in Jammu have come as a shot in the arm for the BJP, which has been left disheartened by the results of the Lok Sabha election.