BJP leading in 17 LS seats, INDIA bloc parties in two in Rajasthan

Jaipur: The BJP was leading in 17 Lok Sabha seats and INDIA bloc parties --Congress and RLP -- on two in Rajasthan as the counting of postal ballots was taken up first in the 25 constituencies in the state, according to news channels.

Counting began at 8 am at 29 centers in Rajasthan.

Till 8.30 am, channels showed that BJP candidates Arjun Ram Meghwal (Bikaner), Dushyant Singh (Jhalawar), CP Joshi (Chittorgarh), Bhagirath Chaudhary(Ajmer), Rao Rajendra Singh (Jaipur Rural), Indu Devi (Karauli), Sumedhanand (Sikar), Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (Jodhpur), PP Chaudhary (Pali), Mahendrajeet Singh Malvia (Banswara), Priyanka Belan (Ganganagar), Bhupendra Yadav (Alwar), Om Birla (Kota) were in the lead.

For the INDIA bloc, RLP's Hanuman Beniwal (Nagaur) and Congress's Murari Lal Meena (Dausa) were leading in their respective seats, according to initial trends.

The official trend has not been released by the Election Commission yet.