* The exit polls commissioned by various news channels to get a sense of the shape of the next government at the Centre predicted a badly fractured mandate, with the Congress-led UPA shown holding a slight edge over the BJP-led NDA.
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* Prakash Karat says left will not allow BJP to form government and it says its ready for a congress lead minority government.
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* The desperate hunt for allies led Congress to “touch base” with recently estranged partner Samajwadi Party as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other top Congress leaders, who have taken charge of the numbers mobilisation, sought a meeting with the SP leadership.
