PM Manmohan Singh with Narendra Modi, BJP's candidate for Prime Minister (File Picture)
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said, "I am one of those who takes very seriously our opponent. There is no room for complacency."
His remarks on Narendra Modi, the opposition's candidate for Prime Minister, come 48 hours after exit polls have predicted that the BJP will win four of the five states that voted recently, and are being seen as an indicator of the possible outcome of the national election, due by May.
Dr Singh said his party will approach the national elections "with a spirit of self confidence. That should not be mistaken -whatever is the outcome of Assembly polls."
The results of the state elections will be declared on Sunday.
The five state polls are being seen as a litmus test not for both the Congress' vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Mr Modi, who campaigned relentlessly in all five states, seeking to gain momentum for the much bigger battle of general elections due by May.
The BJP has said that voters choose their state governments based on the ability and record of local leaders. The party has said the results should not be seen as a referendum on Mr Modi's acceptability for the country's top job.
But it appropriated the exit polls and their prediction of a BJP sweep with alacrity, saying that the results prove that the country is tired of the inefficiency and corruption that the Congress has saddled India with.