The Modi-led alliance won India's parliamentary elections

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared victory in the national election, but his goal of winning an undisputed majority hangs in the balance.
"Today is a glorious day... The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will form the government for the third time, we are grateful to the people," Modi told jubilant supporters at his party headquarters in New Delhi.
Although the final votes are still being counted, India's election body confirmed that the NDA coalition had secured the required majority with 272 seats. This means that Modi will be able to form a third cabinet in a row.
However, Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) failed to secure the 272 seats needed for an absolute majority in parliament, according to preliminary data from the Election Commission. It is a stunning failure and leaves her dependent on coalition partners to form a government.
The result is a personal blow to Modi, who triumphantly promised to win a super majority of 400 seats in this year's elections.
India's opposition, largely written off in polls and by many analysts, portrayed the result as a rejection of Modi's divisive style.
Rahul Gandhi, leader of the Indian National Congress (INC), said the first election results showed that "the country has unanimously and clearly" said it does not want Modi and his party to rule the country.
The NCI led an alliance of opposition parties that tried to oust Modi. Although they seem to have failed in this task, they have dented his previous aura of electoral invincibility.
Preliminary results also show that the opposition has reduced the number of seats of the BDZ, including in some of the ruling party's traditional strongholds. Only NCI is currently on track to double the number of seats it won in 2019.
The electoral authorities are still counting the votes and the final results are expected in the coming hours.
Meanwhile, Indian stocks tumbled as the result raised doubts that Modi could push through more aggressive economic reforms. | BGNES