After months of hectic campaigns, hundreds of roadshows, innumerable rallies, countless controversies and war of words between political parties and their leaders, India has finally come to the end of Lok Sabha elections 2024 and will know the results by tonight, whether the Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will be in power for a third straight term, in line with exit poll projections, or the INDIA bloc of Opposition will block the hattrick from happening.
Counting of votes for the seven-phased Lok Sabha elections is taking place from 8 am Tuesday, June 4, for the 543-seat battle of general elections 2024 amid heavy security at counting centres.
Lok Sabha Election Results 2024 | Key Points
States/UTs and Seats: Voting took place in all 543 seats spread across 28 states and eight Union Territories (UT) in seven phases. The seven phases of voting took place on April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1. Voting for two seats - Betul, Anantnag-Rajouri -were moved to other dates from their original schedule, while repolling was also held at 39 booths due to multiple reasons like death of candidate, inclement weather and incidents of violence.
Majority Mark: The majority mark in the 543-seat Lok Sabha elections 2024 is 272, a number needed by any party or alliance to be able to form government at Centre. In 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the NDA had secured 353 seats, with the BJP alone winning 303. The Congress had bagged 53 seats and its allies 38.
Exit Poll Predictions: While the Congress-led Opposition - INDIA bloc - might do better this elections, the BJP-led NDA is set to return for a third straight term as most pollsters predicted close to or over 370 seats for the latter in the Lok Sabha polls 2024. The NDA, however, seems to not be achieving its target of 400-plus seats, as per projections by most pollsters. Today's Chanakya exit poll agency and India Today-Axis My India exit poll projected that the BJP might hit the 400 milestone, and restricted the INDIA bloc to over 100 seats.
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Controversies Of Lok Sabha Elections 2024: PM Narendra Modi's alleged "hate speeches", comments by political leaders that were termed "sexist" or "racist", "bloopers" by some politicians, a crossfire of social media campaigns by top parties kept the Lok Sabha elections 2024 hitting headlines some or the other way. While social media handles of BJP and Congress, two top parties of India, remained abuzz with reels mocking each other using trending songs, one of the most controversial moments of the polls was PM Modi's April 21 speech where he accused Congress of planning to "redistribute India's resources" and sell "mangalsutras" of the women of the country "among those with more children", naming the Muslims.
Key States: Among 28 states, some like Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka and West Bengal etc., hold significance due to their large seat-share in the Lok Sabha, capable of determining the results of the elections. Of the total 543 seats, UP has 80, West Bengal has 42, Maharashtra 48, Andhra Pradesh 25, Gujarat 26, Karnataka 28 and Madhya Pradesh has 29, making them focus states.
Key Candidates: While listing key candidates in fray in world's largest democratic exercise is a humongous task, BJP leader and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress scion and MP Rahul Gandhi are the biggest faces representing the two top parties and spearheading the fight between them in the mega electoral battle.
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Key Poll Issues: The general elections 2024 took place with the BJP riding on what it calls the success of the Narendra Modi-led central government it attributes to milestones such as Ram Mandir opening, Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) rollout, G20 Summit, sending India to the Moon via Chandrayaan 3 among other big events, some of which have been criticised by the Opposition and a section of people in the country. As BJP banked on these issues to woo voters, Opposition slammed it for not talking about unemployment and price rise in the country.
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Oppn Denied 'Level Playing Field': The election to the lower house -- Lok Sabha -- took place amid the opposition's claim of not getting a "level playing field," with many leaders arrested, and raided by central law agencies, mostly under the stringent Money Laundering Act (PMLA). While Congress, BJP's immediate rival, said tax authorities have frozen its bank accounts, hitting its campaign, some key opposition leaders, including popular Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, were jailed on corruption charges they have denied.
