In the fourth round of a seven-week general election, India held voting on Monday, amid increasingly aggressive campaigning focused on religious and economic divides.
Nearly one billion people are eligible to vote in this seven-phase election, which got underway on April 19 in the most populous country in the world. In a race that sets his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) against an alliance of more than two dozen opposition parties, including chief foe Congress, prime minister Narendra Modi is vying for a rare third term in office.
In this fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, 64.60 per cent of voters participated throughout 10 states and union territories, in 96 constituencies.
It didn't happen without reports of violent incidents and broken electronic voting machines (EVMs) from several states.
In this round of voting, 1,717 candidates were running, and 17.7 core voters were able to cast votes. This phase concludes the voting process for 379 seats in 23 states and union territories.
The seven-phase general election is set to conclude with the final three stages on May 20, May 25, and June 1, with counting on June 4.
Political experts anticipate Modi’s party will maintain power. However, the incumbent faces challenges from an opposition coalition seeking to dent the BJP’s decade-long rule.
So how does it work? Here’s everything you need to know about India’s 2024 election.
How do India’s elections work?
India’s electoral processes are based on the UK’s Westminster system, which means there is a prime minister and upper and lower chambers in parliament.
Several polling rounds will occur across the country from April 19 to nominate candidates to India’s lower chamber of parliament the Lok Sabha (House of the People).
There are 543 seats up for grabs, which are more or less divided by the size of the population in each of India’s 28 states and eight union territories. Once elected, these representatives are expected to hold the seat for five years.
Seven election rounds will be held between April and June, during which various constituencies will cast their votes. India breaks up its elections in this way because of the sheer size of the country.
A party requires 272 in the Lok Sabha to form a majority government — with the new prime minister confirmed on June 4 after all the results.
Reports have revealed more than one million polling stations and 15 million people will work at the polls during the election.
Who are the candidates in India’s election?
While there are many regional parties, this year’s elections are dominated by the current governing party and an opposition coalition trying to break the BJP’s hold.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
The leader of the BJP is the Indian prime minister, Modi, 73.
Modi has been in power since 2014 and earned much support for his economic policies and leadership on the international stage, helping to raise India's profile and overseen India during immense growth and development.
The BJP secured a majority vote in the last two elections and allied with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), further solidifying their majority in the Lok Sabha. This year, Modi is hoping for an even bigger majority of votes.
Not everyone is in favour of Modi’s party, however. The BJP follows a Hindutva ideology, meaning it favours policies that benefit people following the majority religion in India, Hinduism. However, this Hindutva ideology doesn’t necessarily take into account the millions of other Indians who identify as Muslim, Sikh, or Christian.
Discrimination, particularly against Muslim people, has become a growing issue across the country.
The Farmers’ Strikes that have swept the country also point to dissatisfaction among some working-class people about current policies.
Critics have also pointed out that the government has targeted journalists, opposition politicians and activists. This has raised questions about the future of India should Modi be re-elected.
Indian National Congress
Rahul Gandhi is seen as the leader of the Congress party, although Mallikarjun Kharge became its president in October 2022. Gandhi’s father (Rajiv Gandhi), grandmother (Indira Gandhi) and great-grandfather (Jawaharlal Nehru) served as prime ministers in India.
While deeply connected to the country’s political system, some view him as elitist because of his lineage.
The party was a large force in Indian politics for decades but has lost its influence recently. As a result, the party formed a coalition known as the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). This included more than 27 smaller parties, such as the All India Trinamool Congress.
The INDIA alliance aimed to garner enough support for its members to challenge the BJP this year.
However, it’s unclear who the elected leader of the INDIA coalition would be should they win. Internal disputes among the coalition over policies and leadership have seen their support fail to gain traction, as opposed to the decisive leadership of the BJP.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
In 2012, Arvind Kejriwal founded the AAP, and in 2015, he established a municipal government in Delhi, the nation's capital, causing a stunning political shock for long-standing parties like the Congress and BJP. Since then, Kejriwal has served as chief minister of Delhi.
He is an ardent opponent of Modi and a supporter of the Congress in the next elections.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)
The DMK is India's third-largest party and a formidable regional force in the country's south. Tamil Nadu, a state led by the DMK, an ally of the Congress party, has one of the lowest rates of poverty in the country, two per cent, and a high rate of literacy.
All India Trinamool Congress (TMC)
The Trinamool Congress, which has four times as many parliamentary seats as the BJP, is in charge of West Bengal, an eastern state. The party split from the Congress and was reorganised around twenty-five years ago.
Mamata Banerjee, the party's founder, has led the state for almost 13 years and is currently a reluctant partner of the Congress in the battle against the BJP in the 2024 elections. Her party has joined the opposition bloc, which consists of 26 members, but they haven't been able to come to an agreement on who will run from which state seat.
