Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s alliance is on track to clinch victory albeit with a reduced majority in sharp contrast to the landslide exit polls had predicted.
Mr Modi’s BJP-led alliance has won 290 of the 543 seats on the line, but for the first time in a decade, it will be unable to claim an outright majority.
Many observers have been left shocked at the figures from the vote count after polls had projected that the Prime Minister’s alliance will win a supermajority that will give them the numbers to make amendments to the constitution.
Rahul Gandhi – of the opposition Congress party – told journalists on Tuesday that Mr Modi and the BJP had been “punished” by voters at the polls
While there is still a significant number of votes to count, it is however projected that the BJP will not win the required 272 seats needed for a majority in the lower House of Parliament
After a decade in office, the election was seen by many as a referendum on Mr Modi’s performance in office during which he has significantly altered many aspects of life in India, so this would be a major letdown.
The mood in BJP offices around the country has been described as sombre in contrast to opposition Congress headquarters where the party faithful have been in ecstatic mood.
Election officials disclosed that an average of 66% of almost a billion registered voters took part in the elections.
Voting was in seven phases and held between April 19 and June 1 for security and logistical reasons. Much of the election took place in extreme and deadly heat as temperatures in parts of India soared to nearly 50C. About 50 people were killed in the country between March and May
It was the biggest voting exercise the world has ever seen, with about one in eight of the global population casting a vote.