Modi's BJP-led alliance projected to win parliamentary majority in India's election, exit polls show

• Final results, expected on Tuesday, can diverge from exit poll projections.
• India's vote, the world's largest democratic election polling just under a billion eligible voters, panned out in seven phases over the last six weeks and started April 19.
• There are a total of 543 contested seats in the lower house, and the party or coalition that wins at least 272 votes will form the government.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi looks set for a rare third consecutive term in power, as local exit polls on Saturday suggested his Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance will clinch a parliamentary majority.

According to an exit poll summary by local news channel NDTV, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance is expected to secure around 365 out of the 543 seats in the lower house of parliament. The party or coalition that wins at least 272 votes will form the government. Final results, expected on Tuesday, can diverge from exit poll projections.

If the exit polls, which have a patchy record, are confirmed, Modi will serve for another five years as the country's prime minister — a position he has held since 2014.

India's vote, the world's largest democratic election polling just under a billion eligible voters, panned out in seven phases over the last six weeks and started April 19. There are a total of 543 contested seats in the lower house, and the party or coalition that wins at least 272 votes will form the government.

Under Modi's decade-long reign, India has witnessed robust economic growth and a leap in its global reputation. Home to 1.4 billion people, India has one of the fastest growing economies in the world, which expanded 7.2% in the fiscal year 2022-2023 — achieving the second-highest growth rate among the G20