Since May 16 nears, top bookies in Ahmedabad, Rajkot and Indore and have stopped offering bets on Rahul Gandhi as the next prime minister of India, signifying that the Congress VP does not stand much of a chance to move into 7 Race Course Road subsequent to the Lok Sabha poll results are out in mid-May.
Even a month ago, some bookies were offering odds of about Rs 6-7 for Gandhi to be the PM, whereas the rate for Arvind Kejriwal, the founder of Aam Aadmi Party, was about Rs 500-525.
Counter to Rahul Gandhi, the rate for Narendra Modi, the BJP candidate for the PM post, is 45 paise, almost unchanged from what the rate was about a month ago. It means if one bets Rs 100 on Modi to assume the coveted office in Delhi’s South Block, and he actually becomes the PM after May 16, one would get Rs 145.
“Rahul Gandhi is not a running item any more,” says a person who is aware of the rates. According to the person, the rates in other parts of the country would differ by 1-2 paise, and not much.
The rates for the NDA coming to power are 44 paise in the Rajkot-Indore circles. The rates for the BJP, which headed the alliance that ruled the country from 1999-2004, getting 200 Lok Sabha seats is 46 paise and 58 paise for 250 seats.
This rate has somewhat changed what was offered about 10 days ago, — 50 paise to 75 paise for the BJP getting 250 seats — iwhich indicates that the party has a lower chance of getting to that level.
Bookies are also betting solidly about the Congress getting less than 100 Lok Sabha seats, with the rates for it getting 85-90 seats at Rs 1.60-1.70, said thethe person related to bookies.
Rates in these betting hubs of the country almost match what several opinion polls have been predicting. An opinion poll by Times Now — C Voter put 227 seats for the BJP-led NDA, whereas for the Congress-led UPA the number was 101 seats. The opinion poll also puts 215 seats for all non-NDA, non-UPA parties combined.