India: PM Modi Claims Third Term, BJP Loses Majority
India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost its majority on Tuesday, receiving just 240 seats — 32 short of the halfway mark of 272 — in the six-week-long general election....
0:00
/1861
Facts
- India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost its majority on Tuesday, receiving just 240 seats — 32 short of the halfway mark of 272 — in the six-week-long general election.1
- However, incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi has claimed victory and can still form the government for a third time as the BJP-led NDA alliance has won 292 seats in the 543-member parliament.2
- The BJP had set a target of 370 for itself and 400 for its alliance. It had won 303 seats in the last general election in 2019.3
- The opposition, the INDIA alliance led by the Congress party, outperformed expectations and secured 233 seats. Congress alone grabbed 99 seats and emerged as the second-largest party.4
- Though the NDA has the majority, two of its coalition partners, TDP and JDU, are reportedly willing to join hands with the INDIA bloc to establish a non-BJP government.5
- Meanwhile, the Indian stock market recorded the biggest single-day fall in over four years as vote counting trends suggested Modi's alliance was unlikely to win the supermajority predicted by exit polls.6
Sources: 1Associated Press, 2Guardian, 3India Today, 4CNN, 5The Economic Times and 6Reuters.
Narratives
- Narrative A, as provided by NDTV.com. The BJP has received the largest share of votes and got more seats than the combined opposition, which shows that the Indian voters have once again shown full faith in Modi's ability to lead the country to greater heights.
- Narrative B, as provided by Washington Post. With Modi's party losing a majority, Indian voters have actually punished him for crossing some red lines, including propagating Islamophobia, using strong-arm tactics to subdue media and political opponents, and hijacking all constitutional institutions.
- Narrative C, as provided by Global Times. With a resurgent opposition and BJP in the minority, this verdict will likely affect political stability and policy continuity. While Modi may still form the government, as he would need the support of his allies to stay in power, it would be challenging for him to take bold policy measures.
