NEW DELHI (AP) ― Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed victory for his alliance on Tuesday in India's general election, despite a lackluster performance from his own party as it faced a stronger than expected challenge from the opposition, which pushed back against his mixed economic record and polarizing politics.
Supporters of Congress Party dance as they celebrate their party's lead during the counting of votes in India's national election in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. NEW DELHI ― Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed victory for his alliance on Tuesday in India's general election, despite a lackluster performance from his own party as it faced a stronger than expected challenge from the opposition, which pushed back against his mixed economic record and polarizing politics.
"This is public's victory and a win for democracy," Congress party President Mallikarjun Kharge told reporters. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance led in 147 constituencies and won 139, according to the partial count. The Congress party is part of the INDIA alliance, which led in 131 constituencies and had won 99.Exit polling from the weekend had projected the NDA to win more than 350 seats. Indian markets, which had hit an all-time high on Monday, closed sharply down Tuesday, with benchmark stock indices ― the NIFTY 50 and the BSE Sensex ― both down by more than 5%.
But if his BJP is forced to form a coalition, the party would likely"be heavily dependent on the goodwill of its allies, which makes them critical players who we can expect will extract their pound of flesh, both in terms of policymaking as well as government formation," said Milan Vaishnav, director of the South Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Outside BJP party headquarters in New Delhi, supporters banged drums and bells as the counting was underway. Earlier, party workers performed a Hindu ritual. Congress party supporters cheer as they follow proceedings of vote counting at their party headquarters in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. India began counting more than 640 million votes Tuesday in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power.
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