A shortage of jobs, a high rate of inflation, and reduced income in India led voters to cast their votes for various opposition parties, reducing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) below the number required to form the government, according to a survey. The general election results are seen as a setback for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Despite these economic challenges, Modi’s leadership remained a significant draw, helping his alliance secure another term. Modi was named the leader of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which won a majority of seats in the election. The NDA won 293 seats in the 543-member lower house of parliament, surpassing the simple majority of 272 seats required to form a government. However, the BJP alone won only 240 seats. The INDIA alliance led by Rahul Gandhi’s centrist Congress party won over 230 seats, more than forecast.
At least 30% of voters said they were worried about inflation, a jump from the 20% prior to the election. The agency spoke to nearly 20,000 voters across 23 of India’s 28 states throughout the voting period, it said.
The Hindu said that in an earlier survey conducted before the election, unemployment was the main concern of 32% of the respondents." However, during the campaign, possibly on account of the promises of employment resonated with voters, this proportion was reduced to 27% in the post-poll survey," the newspaper said.
The survey further revealed that decreasing income and the government’s way of dealing with corruption and scams were other issues were among factors that worried voters. A total of 21% of the respondents said they chose the BJP for its efforts in developing the country while 20% did so for Modi’s leadership, which doubled from the 10% in the pre-poll survey.
Construction of a grand Hindu temple in the town of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh state in January, cited several times by Modi and the BJP as a landmark event, was the most liked work of the government, according to the survey.
Despite that, the party was unable to win the Faizabad seat where Ayodhya is located. It also performed poorly in other parts of Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state which sends 80 lawmakers to parliament. The BJP’s share of seats there slipped to 33 from 62 at the last election.
With inputs from Reuters.
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