Congress ahead in pre-poll survey

The following is a snapshot of recent developments in the general election campaign. The sources of reports are in brackets.
* A poll carried out by Star News channel and Nielson has predicted the Congress party-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) would get 257 seats in the general election. The Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led alliance would end up with 184 seats, followed by the Third Front of regional and communist parties, with 96 seats. (Star News)
* Talks for an alliance between the ruling Congress party and its allies in two eastern states have broken down. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) have decided to field candidates against sitting Congress lawmakers. This move could undermine the chances of UPA getting more seats in the election.