Should Congress lose Karnataka, it will be left in power in only two states, 1 UT

The counting of votes is underway in Karnataka and the BJP has taken the lead. The party is currently leading in 106 seats, while the Congress is leading in 76. 

Karnataka has a total of 224 assembly seats, but only 222 seats went to the polls this time. (Voting was postponed in Bengaluru's RR Nagar seat where close to 10,000 voter IDs were recovered from a flat. Voting was also postponed in another seat where a candidate died.)  

The halfway mark then is 112 seats. 

Should the Congress lose Karnataka, it will be left in power in only two Indian states and one union territory.

The two states are Punjab and Mizoram. The UT is Puducherry. 

The BJP on the other will end up ruling 21 states (including Karnataka) out of 29. 

Watch: BJP leaders hail victory, Congress disappointed in Karnataka election

The Congress recently lost Himachal Pradesh, while the BJP retained Gujarat, the latest in a string of defeats since 2014 when Prime Minister Modi came to power at the Centre. 

While campaigning for the 2014 general elections, Modi had promised a "Congress-mukt Bharat". 

In 2017, the Congress lost Goa and Manipur — despite emerging as the single-largest party in both states. 

In the 2014 general elections, the Congress won only 44 Lok Sabha — marking a new low.

The next state elections coming up in 2018 are Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The BJP is in power in all three and will therefore have to fight the anti-incumbency factor there.

Also see: Karnataka election results: What didn't work for Congress

In Karnataka, Modi's last-minute blitzkrieg seems to have paid off. The BJP is currently leading in 11 of the 19 constituencies that Modi campaigned in.

Of the 16 constituencies that Rahul Gandhi campaigned in, the Congress is leading in 6. 

Watch the live updates of the Karnataka elections here.