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Ajai Bhambi had slept off the jet lag and was looking forward to lazing through his annual holiday in the United States. The March morning began as usual — with a cup of tea and scanning the newspaper — when a news snippet caught his attention: Parliament elections announced in India. 'Bad timing,' Bhambi thought.

Starting that morning, the New Delhi-based astrologer's cell phone didn't stop ringing. 'I was inundated with calls from politicians. They wanted to know their chances of getting a ticket and winning, when to start campaigning, what gemstone to wear, what ritual to conduct — the works,' he recalls. Bhambi finally returned to India 10 days ahead of schedule.

The astrologer has been busy ever since. 'I've studied the birth charts of over 50 politicians so far,' the soothsayer stresses. He adds that the need to please the stars runs across political parties. 'My clients include communist politicians as well as members of the urban-centric Aam Aadmi Party,' he says.

Electoral victories, clearly, are not just about manifestos, candidates and campaigns. Politicians also have to ensure their stars are aligned, their homes and offices are Vaastu-compliant, that they're wearing the right rubies and sapphires and spelling their names with the requisite numbers of letters.

The demand for heavenly help cuts across hierarchies, with even senior leaders reposing their faith in the stars. Last month, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Lalu Prasad took time off for a personal task — he got a pond in his Patna residence filled with mud and sand. 'A Vaastu expert told him the pond was creating negative energy for his family and political party,' RJD spokesman Vinod Srivastav says. 'Elections are a make-or-break time for politicians. None would let a pond spoil a chance to get into Parliament,' he reasons.

Last month, tongues went wagging in Chennai when DMK leader M.K. Stalin showed up late for an election rally. A local Tamil newspaper claimed he was avoiding flagging off the rally at an inauspicious hour.

So it's no surprise that astrology websites are doing brisk business. Ahmedabad-based Ganeshaspeaks has seen a five-fold increase in the number of politicians seeking their celestial forecasts. Most of them want to know if their election strategies have the go-ahead from the gods, says website CEO Hemang Pandit.

'Campaign strategies are formed keeping auspicious days, times and venues in mind. On the personal front, politicians enquire about lucky gemstones and prayers to remove hurdles,' he adds.

It's also important to keep tabs on the opponent's fortunes. 'A lot of politicians ask to measure their astrological strengths with those of opposing candidates,' says Pandit, who employs a team of 500 astrologists, numerologists and Vaastu experts to predict futures. Costs of soothsaying services go up to Rs 20,000.

A Delhi-based astrology website, Astroyogi, has seen a 200 per cent increase in the number of politicians queuing up to have their fortunes read. 'They want to know an auspicious time to file nomination papers, which constituency would be lucky for them and what prayers to conduct to improve their chances of winning. One politician was keen to change his name to make it numerologically blessed,' Meena Kapoor, CEO, Astroyogi, says.

Adding or deleting letters from a name is high on the political agenda during election season, finds Mumbai-based numerologist Sanjay Jumaani. 'Insecurity thrives in careers such as politics and films, where success depends on how people perceive the product,' he says. In the last two months, Jumaani has been busy doling out advice to politicians on how to sign their names — every little detail like drawing a line to putting a dot counts — and when to step into the election commission office to file nomination papers.

Astrologer Bejan Daruwala has been jet setting across the country in chartered flights. 'Since campaigning keeps politicians busy, they arrange for me to fly across to meet them,' says the Mumbai-based astrologer, who travelled to Calcutta and Chennai in the last fortnight.

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  THUS SPAKE GANESHA: Lalu Prasad got a pond at his residence filled up because it was creating 'negative energy'

Daruwala has given astrological advice to about 700 politicians in the last two months. 'It's a record. There is a lot of anxiety for the coming elections and most of my clients believe the results can go any way,' he says.

That's probably why nothing is left to chance. Daruwala advised politicians on the colour of the clothes to wear and handkerchief to carry when they filed their nomination papers. He's studied the birth charts of people selected to work on a politician's election campaign. He's been asked for his opinion on what party to join and which to desert. 'One political client had reconciled to losing this election. He wanted to know if he'd win the next poll,' he says.

Astrologer Bhambi also says he's had more political visitors this year, as compared to previous elections. 'This is because a lot of new people entered politics. There have been upsets as well, with many old timers being denied tickets,' he explains. The soothsayer says he studies the birth charts of about five politicians every day. 'Everyone wants to know of a way to win,' he adds.

Mohali-based astrologer-cum-numerologist A.K. Shastri has been handing out to his political clients what he says is a sure-shot winning formula — a religious ritual called the 'Banga Mukhi' havan. 'It guarantees a win,' Shastri says about the five-hour long ritual he conducts for a fee of Rs 3 lakh. He's performed the havan for seven politicians, with two more in the pipeline, he adds.

Clairvoyants are, clearly, making hay this election season. The Federation of Indian Rationalists Association (Fira), however, plans to play spoilsport. The organisation has published a 20-question challenge for astrologers in the latest issue of its magazine, Nirmukta. 'The questions are on predicting the election results. There's a reward of Rs 10 lakh for anyone who gets 18 right answers,' Fira president Narendra Nayak says.

Fira had rolled out a similar contest during the 2009 Lok Sabha election as well. 'We received 400 entries — all incorrect,' Nayak points out. Rs 10 lakh anyone?