People are, and should be, at the centre of a democracy. The outcome of the 18th general election is an unambiguous reiteration by the people of that tenet. As the verdict unfolded on June 4, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fell short of an absolute majority in the Lok Sabha, which is a far cry from its claims made during the campaign. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which the BJP leads, has, however, won a majority, getting more than 290 seats. The BJP’s individual tally is 240, which is 63 fewer than its 2019 strength of 303. Two NDA partners, the JD(U) in Bihar and the TDP in Andhra Pradesh, which have won 12 and 16 Lok Sabha seats, respectively, will hold significant sway in the Lok Sabha, as will other regional parties in general. The verdict of the people cannot be clearer than this — it wants the BJP to be more conciliatory and less confrontational towards the political aspirations of various communities and regions of India. The verdict also shows the limits of communal polarisation as a mobilisation strategy, which turned out to be the mainstay of the BJP’s campaign. The outcome holds the BJP accountable, and demands it be more constructive. The BJP must heed that message in a democratic spirit, and reorient itself to the reality of the reemergence of coalition politics after 10 years.

The Congress, which nearly doubled its 2019 tally to reach 99 seats, has restored its position as the other pole of Indian politics, though it finished a distant second. It too should respect the verdict, and resist any temptation to attempt any post-poll coalition at this moment. The pre-poll coalition led by the Congress — INDIA — has not crossed the halfway mark, while the NDA has. Respect for the people requires all parties to remain steadfast to their pre-poll alliances and positions. The Congress has managed to form and lead an alliance in spite of the many internal contradictions, and its leader, Rahul Gandhi, has elevated himself in the public eye as a challenger to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Congress organisation, strategy and communication worked for it this time, while the BJP came up short on all three factors when measured against its claims. The party runs a serious key person risk, with its campaign, strategy and thinking all dependent on one person, Narendra Modi. The overwhelming charisma and style of Mr. Modi served the party well in 2014 and 2019, but the same factors were corroding the party’s organisational strengths and withering its regional and local leadership. These factors, and the accumulated anti-incumbency of two terms, caught up with the BJP. Still, that it won a third term, though in alliance, is remarkable. Its ideological agenda has taken deep roots in its strongholds, enabling it to win what it has even amid clamour about inflation, unemployment and other livelihood issues. By winning a seat in Kerala, the BJP breached a fortress, and by defeating the BJD in Odisha, the party has captured the imagination of a new terrain. That said, the people did not take kindly to its strategy of portraying its return to power as an inevitable fate of Indian democracy.