Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed party workers at Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) headquarters in New Delhi after a 'historic' win in the Lok Sabha elections 2024. Modi, earlier in the day, thanked the people of the country for giving the NDA a third consecutive win. According to recent trends, the NDA crossed the halfway mark and won over 290 seats. The Opposition bloc I.N.D.I.A has also made a strong comeback, winning 234 seats in the Lok Sabha.
Begining his speech with a greeting of 'Jai Jagannath', PM Modi said, "It is for the first time after 1962 that a government is going to serve for a third consecutive term."
"Today is a very auspicious day and the NDA is going to form the government for the third consecutive time. We are all thankful to the public for this. People of nation have reposed their faith in the BJP and the NDA, and our victory is win of the world's biggest democracy," he said.
"The voters of Jammu and Kashmir have shown unprecedented enthusiasm by voting in record numbers. They have also shown a mirror to those who try to defame the nation. I salute the people of this occasion of victory," he said.
"People have placed their faith in NDA, for a third consecutive time! This is a historical feat in India's history," PM Modi said in an X post earlier in the day.
What came as a surprise for the BJP-led NDA, PM Modi is set to lead the government for a third straight term but the saffron camp suffered a setback as it was unable to secure a majority of its own. Comparing its performance since the last polls, the BJP fell far short of the majority mark with 293 seats, in the 543-member Lok Sabha. It had secured 303 seats. The notable comeback by the opposition bloc I.N.D.I.A in crucial states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and West Bengal spoiled the game for the saffron party and defied the wide expectations of the exit polls which predicted a massive win for the BJP.
It is to be noted that the governments are set to change in both Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, the two states where assembly polls were held alongside Lok Sabha elections.
PM Modi's margin of win from Varanasi remained the 'lowest' than the over 4-lakh-vote margin he got in the 2019 election, and in 2014.
Political gurus found the results from the state of Uttar Pradesh were the biggest surprise of the day.
The construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, was among the biggest talking points this election, a poll promise of the saffron party since the 1980s. However, the Ram waves don't seem to support the BJP as the SP is leading in Faizabad, which comprises the Ayodhya assembly seat.