Tense wait for Gujarat result

Votes have been kept under armed guard

Results in crucial assembly elections in the western Indian state of Gujarat are due to be announced on Sunday.

The two-day delay since votes were cast allowed officials to hear complaints about the voting process.

I will not claim any figure... but we are poised for a victory

BJP Gujarat leader Narendra Modi

Fresh votes were held in 15 polling stations on Saturday because of irregularities and faulty voting machines.

Thursday's election is seen as a key test of the Gujarat authorities after religious riots swept through the state earlier this year.

It will also provide an indication of the level of support for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which lost a string of state elections earlier in the year and faces a general election by 2004.

We are confident of a two-third majority in this election

Congress leader Shankarsingh Vaghela

More than 1,000 people, mainly Muslims, lost their lives in the Gujarat riots.

A massive security presence helped ensure the polls passed off without major incident.

Two people died, however, when rival political supporters clashed near the commercial capital, Ahmedabad, on Friday night, police said.

Exit polls

Exit polls have shown the BJP returning to power, but with fewer seats.

	Gujarat votes: 33 million voters 1,000 candidates 37,000 polling stations 181 seats (polling postponed in 1 seat) Results on Sunday 15 December Gujarat election Q&A

"We are poised for a victory," Narendra Modi, the state's caretaker chief minister, told reporters on Saturday.

Congress, too, has been talking up its chances.

Its leader in the state, Shankarsingh Vaghela, says he is confident that disillusioned middle-class votes will bring a two-thirds majority for Congress.

On Saturday, the Election Commission revised downward an initial turnout figure of 63%, a near record, after assessing data from all parts of the state.

"The revised figure is 61.7%," state chief electoral officer Gurcharan Singh told the AFP news agency.

Core voters

Thursday's vote itself was a straight race between the BJP and Congress.

BBC correspondent Adam Mynott said the right-wing Hindu nationalist agenda of Mr Modi sought to capitalise on the state's legacy of violence.

That meant that many other concerns such as water, poverty and employment were overlooked in the campaign.

Analysts say victory in the election could come down to which side managed to bring its core vote out.