India election: Modi secures coalition support, handing him third term in power
- Modi’s Hindu-nationalist party agreed with allies to form a government after a general election in which it failed to secure an outright majority
Experts argue that Modi, who has dominated the government with the BJP’s majority in his last two terms, will be forced to adapt as never before to ensure his coalition partners do not pull the rug out from under him.
Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, an author and independent political commentator, said Modi could not remain the same type of “authoritarian leader that he has been for the last 10 years”.
“If things do not work under Modi, then there will be pressure on him to step down. He will have to become a new Modi,” he said. “It will be tough for him because he has never done that before.”
The BJP secured only 240 seats in this election, far short of its target of 370 seats and far fewer than the 303 it won in 2019. The party suffered its most surprising reverses in its Hindi-speaking heartland states.