Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to claim another term in office as the counting begins of more than 600 million votes cast in the country’s six-week election.
Most exit polls put Modi on track to form a government in coalition with smaller parties. However, analysts have warned that such polls have often been wrong in the past.
Early results from the count signalled that the BJP was within reach of an outright majority, thanks to strong gains in the southern state of Karnataka and only moderate losses in the Hindi heartland states of north India.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Guardian describes the election as “a contest for the soul of India”, with the Hindu nationalist BJP facing off against Congress, whose secular vision has defined the country for most of the past 72 years.
The Times says the “cult of Modi” is set to give him another five years in power. It adds: “In the seven decades since independence, few leaders have captivated India so utterly as Mr Modi. He and the BJP, with its aggressive brand of Hindu nationalism, have changed Indian politics.”
The BBC paints Modi as a “polarising figure adored by many but also blamed for increasing divisions in India”, while Congress leader Rahul Gandhi “is trying to win over an India weary of his family's dynastic grip on politics”.
Milan Vaishnav, the director of the south Asia programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, says: “We are in an era where you have, once more, a central gravitational force around which Indian politics revolves.”
He concludes: “I think 2019 will confirm that the BJP has replaced the Congress as that.”
Rahul Verma, a fellow at the Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research, said: “There is no match for Modi among the opposition parties.”
The analyst added: “He’s running at nearly an all-time high popularity, he’s charismatic, and people still repose faith in him despite not being very happy with the economic side of the government’s performance.”
There has been growing concern over “the spread of violent Hindu nationalism” since Modi’s BJP came to power in 2014, notes CNN, which says the election has “left the country more divided than ever”.
The Indian election is run through a first-past-the-post system. To win, a party or a coalition needs to secure 272 seats out of 543 in the Lok Sabha, or lower house of parliament, to form a government.
-
What is Tony Blair's plan for Gaza?Today's Big Question Former PM has reportedly been putting together a post-war strategy 'for the past several months'
-
When does autumn begin?The Explainer The UK is experiencing a 'false autumn', as climate change shifts seasonal weather patterns
-
The rise of the performative maleTalking Point What the latest internet trope tells us about gender roles, dating and male illiteracy
-
A private zoo run by Asia's richest family is facing criticism and investigationsUnder the radar The zoo is owned by Anant Ambani, the son of Asia's richest person
-
China is silently expanding its influence in American citiesUnder the Radar New York City and San Francisco, among others, have reportedly been targeted
-
Delhi's dogs earn Supreme Court reprieveIN THE SPOTLIGHT After an outcry from the public and animal rights activists, India's Supreme Court walks back a controversial plan to round the city's stray dog population into shelters
-
India's fake weddingsUnder The Radar New party trend promises all the fun of a wedding without any of the downsides
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctionsThe Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
China looms large over India and Pakistan's latest violenceIN THE SPOTLIGHT Beijing may not have had troops on the ground, but as South Asia's two nuclear powers bared their teeth over Kashmir, China eyed an opportunity
-
Kashmir: India and Pakistan's conflict explainedThe Explainer Tensions at boiling point in the disputed region after India launched retaliatory air strikes on its neighbour
