Modi’s BJP returns to power in crucial state election

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is on course to win a landslide majority in India’s richest state of Maharashtra, trends show.

The BJP and its allies are leading in close to 220 out of 288 seats, comfortably above the halfway mark needed to form a government.

Maharashtra, which has India’s financial center Mumbai as its capital, is one of the most politically decisive states in the country.

However, the BJP is staring at defeat in the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand, where the main opposition Congress and its allies are on course to win.

This was the first regional election in Maharashtra since the crucial parliamentary polls earlier this year in which Modi returned for a historic third period but lost his majority, having to rely on regional allies to form a government.

Maharashtra was one of the states where the BJP suffered a setback, with opposition parties winning two-thirds of the parliamentary seats.

Modi’s party currently leads the incumbent government in Maharashtra along with breakaway factions from two regional parties, the Shiv Sena and the National Congress Party (NCP).

Political analysts say the BJP’s retention of the state will give a much-needed boost to the party, which also won regional elections in the northern state of Haryana last month.

“This result has taken us by surprise. We knew we would win, but we never expected such an overwhelming result,” BJP spokesperson Pravin Darekar told reporters in Mumbai.

The result will also decide the fate of regional heavyweights, many of whom switched parties overnight in both states.

In Maharashtra, Modi led his party’s campaign from the front, announcing several welfare schemes, many of which targeted farmers. The state is a major agricultural belt and producer of crops such as onions, soybeans and cotton.

The opposition also made similar promises, including waiving agricultural loans and financial assistance to women and senior citizens.

Critics have pointed out that the competing poll promises would mean the new government would face a serious fiscal challenge in delivering them or risking the wrath of voters.

The state has gone through considerable political turmoil in recent years. The BJP-led coalition remained in power after some legislators from the Shiv Sena and NCP broke away from their parties and joined the government.

Meanwhile, Jharkhand, where seven chief ministers have ruled since the state’s formation in 2000, has also witnessed political upheaval in recent months following its chief minister. Hemant Søren was arrested in February on charges of corruptionwhich he denied.

After his release in JuneSøren soon went on the road and tried to take advantage of sympathy votes.

While the BJP called Soren corrupt, he claimed that the federal government was unfairly targeting a tribal minister.

Tribal communities make up nearly 9% of India’s population and remain one of the country’s most marginalized groups.

Like Maharashtra, Jharkhand also saw parties promising cash incentives, free power, jobs and health insurance.