NDA Poised for Another Term Despite Setbacks in Lok Sabha Elections

The Election Commission of India declared 542 out of 543 Lok Sabha constituency results, showing BJP winning 240 seats and the Congress 99 seats. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set for a third term with the NDA majority, despite needing key allies' support.

The Election Commission of India has announced results for 542 of the 543 Lok Sabha constituencies, with the BJP securing 240 seats and the Congress garnering 99. The Beed constituency's result in Maharashtra remains pending, where NCP's Bajrang Manohar Sonwane leads over BJP's Pankaja Munde.

While the Lok Sabha comprises 543 members, counting occurred for 542 seats after BJP's Surat candidate Mukesh Dalal won unopposed.

Early Wednesday results revealed Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to lead for a third term, with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) achieving a majority in the Lok Sabha. This is despite heavy losses in three Hindi heartland states and the election being viewed as a referendum on Modi's popularity.

The BJP, contesting under Modi's leadership, achieved 240 seats, shy of the 272 majority mark, necessitating ally support within the NDA for government formation. This outcome contrasts with the 303 and 282 seats secured in 2019 and 2014, respectively, which provided a stand-alone majority.

With backing from critical allies like Tamil Nadu's Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Bihar's JD(U), securing 16 and 12 seats, respectively, along with other partners, the NDA reached the majority. The Congress, part of the opposition INDIA bloc, obtained 99 seats, an increase from 52 in 2019, affecting BJP's shares in Rajasthan and Haryana. The Samajwadi Party's performance boosted the INDIA bloc in Uttar Pradesh with 37 seats, while the Trinamool Congress (TMC) won 29 seats in West Bengal, an improvement from its 22 seats in 2019. Conversely, the BJP, which had 18 seats previously, ended with 12 seats. The results defied the BJP-led NDA's expectations of a landslide victory, as predicted by exit polls.

The election witnessed the counting of over 640 million votes in the world's largest democratic exercise, conducted from April 19 to June 1 in seven phases.