Rishika Sadam and Shilpa Jamkhandikar
HYDERABAD (Reuters) – A key ally of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged his support on Wednesday and was due to attend a meeting to discuss forming a coalition government, boosting Modi’s chances of a record third term in office.
Modi’s Hindu Nationalist Party lost its overall majority in parliament in a surprise election verdict on Tuesday and he will need the support of his National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners to form a government.
On Wednesday, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), a key regional player in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh and part of the alliance, said it stood firmly behind Modi and his party.
“We are with the NDA, I will be attending the meeting in Delhi today,” TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu told reporters.
The NDA won 293 seats in the 543-member lower house of parliament, more than the 272 seats needed to form a government.
Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 240 seats on its own, spooking investors and raising concerns about the government’s reform agenda. The TDP won 16 seats and the remaining allies won the rest of the NDA.
The weakening majority in Modi’s alliance could spell trouble for more ambitious elements of the government’s reform agenda, ratings agency Fitch said.
However, it added: “Despite the narrower majority, we expect broad policy continuity to remain, with the government maintaining its focus on increased capital investment, ease of doing business measures and gradual fiscal consolidation.”
Newspapers reported that Modi’s halo had dimmed and the headline on the Indian Express banner read: “India gives NDA for third term, Modi message.”
Modi’s own victory in Varanasi, considered one of the holiest cities for Hindus, was muted, with his margin of victory falling from nearly 500,000 votes in the last general election in 2019 to just over 150,000.
But this reduced victory does not necessarily mean paralysis of reforms, Arvind Panagariya, chairman of the government’s finance commission, said in an editorial in the Economic Times newspaper.
“Despite the reduction of the majority in parliament, the necessary reforms are quite feasible. Ensuring sustainable economic growth at an accelerated pace can only strengthen the government’s position in the coming years,” he said.
The opposition INDIA alliance, led by Rahul Gandhi’s centrist Congress Party, won 230 seats, more than predicted. The Congress alone won 99 votes, almost double the 52 it won in 2019. This is expected to be a surprise leap that will boost Gandhi’s profile.
The INDIA alliance is also expected to meet on Wednesday in New Delhi and discuss the future course of action.