INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu chauvinist party has failed to win a parliamentary majority on its own for the first time since taking power 10 years ago, official results showed today.

The Election Commission announced that the National Democratic Alliance, which includes Mr Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), had  won 294 seats, more than the 272 needed to secure a majority but far fewer than had been predicted.

The far-right BJP picked up 240 seats, but that was a far cry from the 303 it won in the 2019 election. 

This was a stunning blow to Mr Modi, who had boasted during campaigning that his party would probably win 370 seats, with his allies taking another 30.

Nonetheless, he still claimed the result as a victory and claimed that India “will see a new chapter of big decisions” taken to boost the economy.

The prime minister will now be forced to depend on the support of key allies, including the Telugu Desam Party in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, with 16 seats, and Janata Dal (United), which won 12 seats in the eastern state of Bihar, as well as smaller groups.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said: “The BJP has no mandate. It has been given to the India [opposition alliance]. People had no faith in the India bloc’s vote share, but it has happened.”

India, which stands for Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, won a total of 232 seats.

The Congress party, its principal member, gained 99 seats, a major improvement on the 52 it won in the 2019 election. 

“This is the public’s victory and a win for democracy,” Congress party president Mallikarjun Kharge told reporters.

Among its key allies, Samajwadi Party won 37 seats in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, dealing a big blow to the BJP, the All India Trinamool Congress netted 29 seats in West Bengal state and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam took 22 seats in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.