New Delhi, June 4 (IANS): As per the latest trends provided by the Election Commission of India, the Congress was leading in 97 Lok Sabha seats, sending in a wave of joy among the party workers.

If the party can maintain the trends, it could be headed to its best performance since 2014. The party won 44 seats in 2014 and 52 in the 2019 election. In 2009 the party -- then heading the United Progressive Alliance -- had won 206 seats.

In 2014 the Congress -- then led by Rahul Gandhi -- slumped to a massive defeat, losing 162 seats and dropping nearly 9.3 per cent of the vote share.

In 2019 the BJP maintained its lead further and won 303 seats on its own. The NDA then got 353 seats.

The Hindi belt was key to the BJP's victory, with the party picking up 74 seats in Uttar Pradesh, 39 in Bihar, and 28 in Madhya Pradesh. It also swept Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi, winning 77 seats from these states. With Chhattisgarh's nine and Jharkhand's 11, the BJP amassed 238 seats from this belt.

The Congress, which was contesting under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, slumped again in this belt. It managed to win just six seats on its own and seven with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha.

Rahul Gandhi suffered a shock defeat in Uttar Pradesh's Amethi constituency.