Finally, the polling is over, and the game of predicting who will form the next government has begun.

Leaders of all major as well as regionl parties are busy these days, engaged in closed door meetings with prospective allies, with bohomie writ all over among even bitter pre-poll foes to gather the necessary support to form the government at the centre.

How relible these pollsters are will be known when official results will be released on Saturday.

Most polsters widely believe that of the 543 seats at stake, the ruling Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has an edge over the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

According to exit polls conducted by leading television channels, the Congress is expected to get around 155 seats and finish marginally ahead of the BJP, which is projected to win around 143 seats.

If this comes true, the president will be expected to invite Congress to form the government.

With its allies expected to win another 44 seats, the UPA is trying hard to bring under its fold all secular minded parties, big and small.

The CNN-IBN polls show that the BJP's allies will get 32 seats, while the Star News Nielson poll puts the number at 44, taking the NDA's tally to about 184. Another poll by India TV-Cvoter says that the Congress and its allies will get 195 seats, while the NDA will get 189 seats.
 
The Left, which had won 61 seats in 2004, is projected to finish with about 35 seats this time, which still enable it a commanding voice in the government formation.

According to exit polls, BJP will have to surrender its share of votes in Punjab and Rajasthan, but it may gain strongly in Gujarat, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.

Congress-NCP coalition is expected to win about half the seats in Maharshtra, the second largest contributor to the parliament with 48 seats, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh.

In a highly fragmented post-poll scenario, analysts are apprehensive of the about a dozen of regional parties who may have a larger say in government formation including Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which is expected to win about 28 seats in the Hindi heartland of Uttar Pradesh; Mulayam Singh Yadav's Samajwadi Party (SP) which is likely to win about 23 seats; Jayalalitha's AIADMK; and Chandrababu Naidu's TDP.

The Left parties, along with some of these, form the Third Front. However, there are cracks visible within the alliance.

Reports indicate that though states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand are likely to deliver a serious setback to the Congress and the UPA, leaving their tally severely depleted compared to 2004, others like Kerala, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Punjab and Orissa could mitigate this damage.

Meanwhile, Bihar and Jharkhand are seen as safe bets for the NDA as against its expected setbacks in Orissa, Punjab and Rajasthan.

In Uttar Pradesh, the state which holds the key to the parliament with 80 seats, BSP and SP are fighting tooth and nail to gain their entry into the central cabinet. However, it's still unclear whom they will support in a post-poll scenario.

According to analysts, without having an outright majority the post poll scenario will mostly depend on the wisdom of the smaller parties.

CPM leader Prakash Karat today reiterated that Mayawati and Chandrababu Naidu have their loyalty to the Left front. According to analysts, the Left may extend a helping hand to Congress in a shaky post-poll scenario.

Reflecting the mood of a hung parliament, India's benchmark index fell 1.14 per cent on Wednesday after rallying 4.1 per cent on Tuesday on speculation that the business-friendly BJP would form the next government.

The possibility of a weak coalition emerging from the election could further unsettle the markets next week.

In 2004, Congress won only 145 seats; but the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) with 234 seats came to power with outside support from the Communists. Meanwhile, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) had 184 seats in the last Parliament.