India
Written by: Vidur Srikrishna
Summary:
Narendra Modi won the recent Indian election, making it his third term as India’s prime minister.
Many attended the ceremony, including Bollywood stars and leaders of the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party). Modi did not win an outright majority for the first time in his career. This asks the question: Will Modi change the government seats and exchange key positions with partners in his NDA (National Democratic Alliance) coalition? The BJP only won 240 of 543 seats in parliament, with the NDA claiming more seats. This is a loss for Modi and a victory for the opposition, especially as Modi’s campaign targeted 400 seats. The opposition, even though they did not win, is still winning due to the fact that this could end 10 years of the BJP and Modi dominating Indian politics. According to the BBC, the BJP holds about a third of India’s 4,000-plus state assembly seats. This is set to change as five states are set for elections. If these states end up having less support for the BJP, it would lead to fewer votes and even more issues for Modi.
Analysis:
Now that Modi has been elected for his third term as prime minister, many are asking if this will bring change to India. Previously, we saw Modi make some changes to India, however, he also failed to address certain issues. For example, he delivered incredible growth and increased India’s global standing while leaving some problems, such as low incomes, high prices, and lack of jobs. He also generally failed to resolve the issues with the religious divide in India. Modi doubled down on Hindu nationalism and capitalized on religious tensions for political gain. This election also brings the shocking news that the BJP did not win the majority. This is crucial as it could lead to a turning point in Indian politics. For the past decade, Modi has led India as prime minister, however, his opposition has hope for the future. This is because more state elections are set, which could lead to even less BJP support nationwide. This also marks a surprising revival of the “INDIA” alliance which opposes Modi. They have been trying to take down Modi and win the election, and likely have used the name “INDIA” to try to band the nation together against Modi’s rule. He stated on X that he was honored to serve “Bharat,” purposely not using the name that the alliance goes by. This was seen before in 2023 when he used the name Bharat instead of India during the G20 summit in 2023. If Modi does not get elected again for a fourth term, it is uncertain whether the religious divide will be solved or if there will still be incredible growth for the country given India’s history in politics. Only time will tell.
