2024-04-19 03:50:38
The parliamentary elections have begun in India. Recent polls predict a victory for incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist party BJP. This means that the 73-year-old could rule for another five years after ten years in power. Because of the size of the country – India is the most populous country in the world with 1.4 billion inhabitants – the vote takes six weeks. The result is expected on June 4th.
Around 970 million eligible voters are called upon to vote at more than a million polling stations on the composition of the lower house, which has more than 500 seats. Voting began on Friday morning in 102 electoral districts in 21 states and so-called Union Territories, as the Election Commission announced.
Modi and his BJP party are running against a weak opposition camp. Its main opponent, the Congress Party under its leader Rahul Gandhi, only governs three of the country’s 28 states. It had once ruled the subcontinent since its independence from Great Britain in 1947.
Under Modi, India rose to become the fifth largest economic power and is also playing an increasingly important political role as a counterweight to China. Hinduism has become the center of national identity. According to critics, religious minorities are increasingly becoming second-class citizens.
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