Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's Congress (I) Party trailed badly Wednesday in early assembly poll returns in four states, officials and news reports said.
In incomplete results from Madhya Pradesh state, the Congress (I) Party was leading in 22 seats, while the right-wing Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was ahead in 120 races, state-run television said.In Rajasthan, the BJP was ahead in returns from 39 contests and Congress (I) Party in 21, the television said. Prime Minister V.P. Singh's Janata Party, the main component of his five-party minority National Front government, led in 21.
The Janata Dal led in 23 seats in Orissa, while the Congress (I) Party was in front in two, the Press Trust of India said.
In Gujarat, the Janata Dal was leading in 60 races, the BJP was ahead in 44 and the Congress (I) Party in 45, said state-run television.