Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi displays his distinctive ink finger after casting his vote at a polling station in Ranib, Ahmedabad on May 7, 2024.
Sajjad Hussein | AFP | Getty Images
The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance won 353 seats in 2019. If the numbers hold, the BJP will lose about 60 seats compared to its tally in the 2019 general elections of 303 seats. The lower house of the Indian Parliament has 543 seats, and the party or coalition that wins at least 272 forms the government.
“People in India are very keen to see Minister Modi take the reins again. I think the pressure is on him more than ever,” said Sameer Kapadia, CEO, India Index and Managing Director, Vogel Group. “He will continue to build India the way Indians want to see it.”
Modi It said He said in March that he was confident of the BJP-led NDA getting more than 400 seats.
“Although Prime Minister Modi remains a popular figure, his luster has diminished as day-to-day realities like unemployment, inflation and governance dominate the minds of voters,” said Yamini Aiyar, former president of the New Delhi-based Center for Policy Research. He told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia.”
According to a survey conducted by the Center for the Study of Developing Societies in April, unemployment was the main concern for 27% of the 10,000 people surveyed. More than half of respondents (62%) said it had become more difficult to find a job in the past five years during Modi’s second term.
The unemployment rate in the world’s most populous country rose to 8.1% in April, compared to 7.4% in March, according to World Bank data. Center for Monitoring Indian Economy.
“It remains to be seen whether Modi can attract the kind of labor-intensive jobs that India needs,” said Atman Trivedi, partner and head of the South Asia practice at Albright Stonebridge Group.
India’s benchmark indices Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex on Tuesday fell 8% as trends showed that the BJP may not achieve a clear majority on its own.
Shares of market heavyweights Adani Ports and Adani Enterprises fell more than 20%, while State Bank of India and ICICI Bank fell 17% and around 9%, respectively.
On Monday, both the Nifty and Sensex hit record highs and posted their best intraday gains since February 1, 2021, rising 3.25% and 3.39%, respectively, after exit polls over the weekend predicted a landslide majority for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party. .
The Indian rupee fell 0.31% on Tuesday after rising 0.41% on Monday.
Under Modi, India, with a population of 1.4 billion people, has seen strong economic growth. the The fastest growing economy The world witnessed it GDP growth of 8.2% In fiscal year 2024.
the International Monetary Fund projects India’s economy will grow by 6.8% in 2024 and 6.5% in 2025, compared to China’s growth expectations of 4.6% in 2024 and 4.1% in 2025.
“Prime Minister Modi will have to flex his muscles against adversaries like China. This will include signaling support for indigenous defense manufacturing capabilities,” Kapadia stressed.
In the Bharatiya Janata Party Manifesto Modi said that the government will make India one of the three largest economies in the world in the coming period, and will fight poverty forcefully, open new horizons for growth and fight corruption.
He said in the statement: “We have moved from a country that was among the five fragile states to a country that is one of the five largest economies in the world.”
While India has seen strong economic growth under Modi, observers and critics have warned of “democratic decline” in the country.
“For example, the ruling anti-pluralist Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, headed by Prime Minister Modi, has used sedition, defamation and anti-terrorism laws to silence critics.” V-Dem Institute based in Sweden He said in the 2024 report.
However, others pointed to the country’s giant electoral exercise as a testament to its strong democratic foundations.
“The election also highlights India as a rising star built on democracy, and I am glad that it is drawing a lot of attention for all the dynamic growth we are seeing in the country right now,” Malcolm said. Dorson, Senior Portfolio Manager and Head of Emerging Markets Strategy at Global X ETFs.
— CNBC’s Sumathi Bala contributed to this story.
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