Narendra Modi will serve as India’s prime minister for a third term, a day after dismal election results saw his majority slashed by a resurgent opposition.
Modi once again received support to become prime minister after a meeting with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Wednesday.
The 73-year-old found himself unexpectedly relying on the NDA’s smaller parties for a parliamentary majority after his own party failed to reach the 272 seats needed to form the next government.
However, the opposition won 232 seats to the NDP’s 293 but has yet to formally concede.
The company held a meeting in the capital Delhi on Wednesday to discuss next steps.
Mr Modi is likely to be sworn in for a record third term later this week.
Mr Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 240 seats after weeks of seven-phase elections, becoming the largest party in India’s lower house.
But for the prime minister, the numbers are significantly lower: In 2019, the BJP won 303 seats, and Modi has said he is targeting 370 this time.
Instead, they have had to rely on NDA partners to secure Mr Modi’s third term.
He was “unanimously” elected as their leader at a meeting held at his Delhi residence, according to a release from the NDA, adding that they are “committed to serving India’s poor, women, youth, farmers and the exploited, dispossessed and oppressed” Citizen Service”.
Exactly what concessions its partners will get from the BJP remains to be seen. There had been speculation ahead of the meeting that demands from more powerful groups could include ministerial posts in exchange for their support.
This is the first time Modi has governed in coalition with a party with an outright majority, and it’s unclear what the next five years will look like.
Nilanajan Mukhopadhyay, who has written a biography of Modi, told AFP that this would “force Modi to adopt someone else’s point of view”.
“We will see more democracy and a healthy parliament,” he added.
“He has to be an unprecedented leader; we have to see a new Modi.”
Meanwhile, the opposition Indian Alliance has been celebrating the result – despite not winning.
Congress president Mallikarjun Haq praised the “overwhelming support for our alliance” and said voters had sent a message against the BJP’s “politics of hate, corruption and dispossession”.
“This is a mandate to defend the Constitution of India, fight against rising prices, unemployment and crony capitalism and save democracy,” his statement on social media added.
After the NDA declared victory, the White House congratulated Modi and said the United States wanted to work with India to “ensure a free and open” Asia.
This year’s Indian elections are the largest ever in the world. More than 600 million people voted, accounting for 66% of the country’s eligible voters. In total, nearly one billion people are registered to vote – about one-eighth of the global population.
For security and logistical reasons, voting was staggered over seven rounds between April 19 and June 1. Much of the election was held in extremely hot weather, with temperatures soaring to nearly 50 degrees Celsius in parts of India.
