In what is being billed as a triumph for India’s struggling business community, Narendra Modi has been swept to victory in the country’s general election. It also brings to an end the decade long rule of the Congress Party, and crushes the hopes of its young campaign leader Rahul Gandhi.
So far 269 of the country’s 543 constituencies have been declared as victories for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with just 49 voting for Congress. It is thought that more than 540m of the country’s 810m citizens voted.
While some constituencies are yet to be declared, the seemingly huge victory has led to Congress conceding defeat. Randeep Surjewala, a spokesman for the party, said, “We concede that the people of India have spoken and we will humbly accept the verdict and perform the role assigned to us as a responsible opposition.”
Many young voters and business leaders have called for a BJP win, with the hope that jobs will be created
A hugely divisive figure, the 63-year old Modi has seen his pro-business party secure a landslide victory that will be a welcome relief to both international and domestic business leaders that had become fed up with the intransigence, corruption and bureaucracy over the last ten years.
Many young voters and business leaders have called for a BJP win, with the hope that jobs will be created and large-scale infrastructure projects will finally get off the drawing board.
Claiming victory, Modi declared on Twitter, “India has won. Good days are here again.” However, it will also cause despair among the country’s considerable Muslim community – as well as its already fraught relations with neighbouring Pakistan – who have not forgiven Modi for his actions in his home state of Gujarat during the riots of 2002. Those riots saw hundreds of Muslims murdered by Hindu mobs, and Modi’s dismissive reaction to the deaths has caused huge ill feeling from the country’s Muslim community.
The crushing defeat for Congress also represents something of a surprise. Many observers predicted that the party would lose, but the manner in which they have been ousted from office has come as a shock.
The party has been in power for the last ten years, and represents the political dynasty of the influential Nehru-Gandhi family. The man chosen to represent it at the election, Rahul Gandhi has disappointed many Congress supporters with his stunted public performances and lacklustre policies.
