The BJP has swept polls in three central Indian states in regional elections held last month, ousting the opposition Congress party in two of them
India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has won regional elections in three out of five states where legislative assembly elections were held in November, according to the polling results announced on Sunday night.
The BJP has returned to power in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and ousted the Congress, India’s main opposition party, in two other heartland states – Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Congress, at the same time, emerged a winner in southern Telangana state, which has been ruled by a regional party Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) since 2014.
The vote counting was conducted on Sunday in all the four states, while in Mizoram, the fifth state that went to polls last month, was postponed to Monday, given it is a Christian-majority state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that the assembly election results are a win for the two key concepts promoted by his government – self-reliant India (‘Aatmanirbharta’) and “development for all” (‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas’).
Addressing party workers at the BJP headquarters in the national capital as the vote counting was still on, PM called the saffron party’s victory in assembly elections “historic and unprecedented”. “This hattrick of victories has given the guarantee for the 2024 hattrick,” he added, referring to the upcoming general elections next year, where he will seek a third consecutive term.
Modi suggested that the results of the latest state elections, that are touted as a ‘semifinal’ ahead of next year’s national polls, indicate that a third term next year is guaranteed. “The results … indicate that the people of India are firmly with politics of good governance and development, which the BJP stands for,” PM posted on X.
We bow to the Janta Janardan. The results in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan indicate that the people of India are firmly with politics of good governance and development, which the @BJP4India stands for. I thank the people of these states for their unwavering…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 3, 2023
Meanwhile, in Telangana, BRS leadership has accepted the defeat before the votes counting process was completed. Working president of the party and Minister K.T. Rama Rao took to a social media platform on December 3 afternoon, stating that the party is “grateful to the people of Telangana for giving two consecutive terms of governance”.
Exit polls have initially presented divided opinions, with some favoring the BJP in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, while others suggested an advantage for the Congress in both Telangana and Chhattisgarh.
You can share this story on social media: