The 7th electoral stage at a polling station in Jalandhar, India, June 1, 2024. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

India’s general election was held from April 19 to June 1 in seven stages. More than 642 million voters cast ballots to elect 543 members to the House of Representatives and decide which Party will rule India for the next five years.

Historic election

The six-week election saw no major incidents, despite security concerns, particularly in some southern states and states with a large percentage of Muslim voters.

At least 50 people died and tens of thousands of people suffered from heat stroke during the election period. More than 66% of India’s 970 million voters cast their ballot, 1% fewer than in the 2019 general election.

Head of the Election Commission of India Rajiv Kumar said: "We have created a world record of 642 million voters. This is a historic moment for all of us. This is 1.5 times the voters of all G7 countries and 2.5 times the voters of 27 countries in the European Union. We thank each and every one who took part in this festival of democracy. The Indian elections are indeed a miracle having no parallel in the world.” 

More than 750 political parties took part in the election, but the main competition was between the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Indian People's Party (BJP) and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) led by the Congress Party.

India's impressive economic performance under the administration of Prime Minister Modi and the BJP was a key factor in the voting. India is a major economy whose growth rate – 8.2% in the previous fiscal year – is the best in the world. India has been playing an increasingly important role in the world. It has become a pillar of the Global South, an important member of the emerging economies bloc BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), and a priority strategic partner of many powers. Prime Minister Modi’s BJP party has gained a majority of the voters by promoting Hindu nationalism.

Voters wait at a polling station in Varanasi, India, June 1, 2024. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

Post-election challenges

Following the election, the world's most populous country will have to address a number of challenges. Although India rose to become the world’s 5th largest economy during Modi's 10 years in power – and is forecast to rise to 3rd place within the next two years – its per capita income remains the lowest among the G20 emerging economies.

Its unemployment rate is another big problem. The Center for Monitoring the Indian Economy said India’s unemployment rate in April was 8.1%. The unemployment rate for urban workers 15-29 years of age is 17%. The opposition parties criticized Prime Minister Modi for this during the campaign.

Observers highlighted the growing inequality in Indian society, especially between urban and rural areas. According to economist Ashoka Mody of  Princeton University, increasing people’s gas and food allowance will help in the short term but is not enough for millions of families trying to escape poverty.

Indian sociologist Pushpendra Kumar Singh said: “The GDP really grows. It really compensates for all loses that the poor are suffering across the country. This is a symptom of growing inequality in India. The rich will get richer and the poor are getting poorer. To address a decline in living standards, they have to work more.”

In addition to economic challenges, the Indian government also needs to address other complex religious and social issues, such as divisions between the 200 million Muslims who constitute 14% of India's population, and the majority Hindus. The dissatisfaction of millions of low income farmers who staged protests last year is another issue the government needs to resolve.