Elections in India: Narendra Modi wins but falls short of majority

The Indian Prime Minister's party, Bharatiya Janata (BJ), was declared the winner of the Indian national elections this Tuesday. These elections determine the makeup of the Lok Sabha, and allow the prime minister to be elected.

Despite his victory, Narendra Modi's party has not achieved the expected majority. The leader of the Hindu conservatives and nationalists seemed confident last Saturday when polls published before the last phase of voting indicated he would secure between 360 and 390 seats in the Indian lower house.

The Indian elections mobilize more people than any other elections in the world. Due to their vast size and complex system, the elections are conducted over six weeks. The 2024 elections began on April 19 and are divided into several phases, with different districts voting separately.

This Saturday's results give Narendra Modi and his party a total of 240 seats in Parliament, down from the 288 seats they secured in 2019. To achieve a majority in the Chamber, at least 272 seats are necessary. As a result, Modil will have to reach agreements with his coalition partners in Parliament to be able to govern effectively.

Despite everything, Modi's victory is historic. Only Jawaharlal Nehru (1947-1964), the country's first leader after independence, governed India for three consecutive terms. However, market instability has been apparent since the beginning of the vote count, with the Indian stock market experiencing a 7% drop in the benchmark Sensex index.

Opposing Modi, the Indian National Congress (INC) party, heir to the era of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, achieved its best results since 2009. With 99 seats, the party seems to be recovering after the 2014 electoral debacle that ousted the INC from power. In the 2019 elections, the INC won 52 seats.