The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : Case for exit polls

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Friday, Apr 30, 2004

Opinion

Opinion - Letters to the Editor

Case for exit polls

Sir, — I refer to the editorial, "What the polls foretell" (April 29), which was well balanced. The exit polls have indicated a healthy trend of the narrowing of the gap between the two major alliances, which exactly is what India needs at the moment. Road-roller majorities make parties in power complacent or indifferent.

K.D. Viswanaathan,
Coimbatore

* * *

Sir, — Exit polls should be banned as they lack credibility. They do not even have broad uniformity in indicating possible trends and projecting a probable political scenario. They have produced an unfavourable effect on the functioning of the stock market as reflected in the sudden crash of the Sensex by 213 points. The escalation of poll-related violence is another result of exit polls. Particularly, the violence that broke out during the second phase of polling in Andhra Pradesh.

K. Venugopal Reddy,
Hyderabad

* * *

Sir, — The results of exit polls have thrown up the worst ever consequence — stock market crash. Do we need anything more to ban them?

Ashutosh Srivastava,
New Delhi

* * *

Sir, — The impact of exit polls on the stock market shows how much they deserve to be banned. They have caused panic in business circles and confusion in the minds of voters who are yet to vote.

Baru Rajendra Prasad,
Hyderabad

* * *

Sir, — It is amusing to see all the political formations competing with one another to form the next government. All this, even before the actual results are out. These are the same parties that rubbished the claims of opinion and exit polls during the first phase, and even sought a ban on them earlier. Now when exit polls predict a hung parliament, our politicians have no qualms about accepting their findings, and are clamouring to appear on TV channels proclaiming that they would form the next government.

G. Anand,
Mumbai

* * *

Sir, — Even before the final round of Lok Sabha elections, potential kings and king-makers have descended on the scene to further muddy the already muddied pool of politics with their own permutations and combinations to grab power. The country is in for troubled times.

V. Padmanabhan,
Bangalore

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