New Delhi, Delhi, India - June 5, 2024

Nationalist Narendra Modi celebrated as a great victory for his government the outcome of the election process that India has gone through over the past month and a half since 19 April. The prime minister, who has been in office since 2014, called the results a "historic feat" and stressed that he will rule "for the third time in a row".

In his speech, Modi thanked the people for this support. "The people have trusted the NDA," the prime minister posted on the X network, referring to the National Democratic Alliance, which is led by his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Modi celebrated before the polling was completed. The primary results of the vote count indicated that the opposition made more progress than expected, but the ruling coalition will retain an absolute majority in parliament, where lawmakers determine who will head the government.

The Election Commission reported that, according to the partial results, of the 543 seats in Parliament, the BJP won 243. In total, the alliance that supports Modi, the NDA, would have won 279 legislators, a number that exceeds the absolute majority of 272 votes in the Chamber of Deputies.

In any case, this means a loss of 51 seats for the ruling alliance since the previous election. The results are also a far cry from the 400 seats the ruling party had hoped to win and from the percentages shown in exit polls.

At the same time, the opposition coalition of more than 20 parties that competed with the NDA, the Inclusive National Development Alliance of India (India), is close to winning more than 200 seats.

SHOTLIST
1. Various of Modi celebrating;
2. Various of Modi supporters celebrating the election result.