Kolkata: In a significant development on the day exit polls for the 2026 Assembly elections were released, polling agency Axis My India announced it will not publish its projections for West Bengal, with its founder Pradeep Gupta citing serious challenges in collecting reliable voter responses.
Gupta said that a large number of voters in the state were unwilling to share their choices with surveyors, making it difficult to generate accurate estimates. According to him, “many voters did not respond” or avoided engaging altogether, raising concerns about the credibility of any projected figures.
“See, the method of Axis My India is talking to people face to face. And when we tried to talk after the first phase, about 60-70 per cent of the people had their lips sealed. They were not even ready to say yes or no,” he told NDTV.
The decision sets Axis My India apart from other pollsters, many of whom released their exit poll predictions soon after voting concluded. Traditionally, the agency is among the most closely watched pollsters due to its track record, and its absence from the West Bengal projections has drawn attention in political circles.
Despite withholding Bengal data, Axis My India confirmed that it would release exit poll results for other states that went to polls, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
The final phase of voting in West Bengal concluded on April 29, after which exit poll results began to emerge following the Election Commission’s mandated blackout period. However, the lack of data from one of the country’s most prominent survey agencies has added an element of uncertainty to the overall exit poll landscape in the state.
Political observers note that exit polls in India have often faced criticism over accuracy, particularly in regions where voters may be reluctant to disclose preferences. Axis My India’s move underscores those challenges, especially in a politically sensitive contest like West Bengal, where the fight between major parties has been closely watched.
