5 States Wait, Eve Of Crucial Results

Political parties were bracing for the assembly election results on Thursday in the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and politically volatile Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur, sending out feelers for possible post-poll tie-ups. On the eve of the counting of votes, the Election Commission announced the removal of three officials, including the nodal officer for EVMs in Varanasi, after a massive controversy erupted over Samajwadi Party's allegation that electronic voting machines were being shifted in an unauthorised manner. With all exit polls giving Aam Aadmi Party a clean sweep in Punjab, the party's Chief Minister candidate Bhagwant Mann says that for him, "CM means common man". Less than 24 hours before the counting of votes for the assembly elections, NDTV spoke to the AAP Chief Minister candidate. Mr Mann said that politics will not "mess with his head" if he becomes Chief Minister. "Fame has always been part of my life," he said.