India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party has lost a bid to win a major state in West Bengal in a local election.
The BJP strongly targeted West Bengal during the campaign, but was comfortably held by incumbent Mamata Banerjee, a fierce critic of Modi.
The party came to power in Assam, but could not make big profits elsewhere.
Voting has been carefully watched for signs of opposition to Mr. Modi during the Covid crisis in India.
For 10 consecutive days, the number of cases per day exceeded 300,000. On Sunday, India set a new daily death record with a record of 3,689. Hospitals are facing a serious shortage of beds and medical oxygen, and many Indians are desperately pleaing social media to secure help.
Campaign meetings and voting It is blamed on the surge in incidents.
What happened in Bengal?
Almost all results are counted, and Mama Tabanerjee’s Trinamor Parliamentary Party (TMC) has more than 200 seats in a 294-seat parliament.
As a result, Ms. Banerjee will be the third leader in West Bengal. She is also the only female prime minister in India.
To celebrate the victory, she said West Bengal “saved” India as a result. “It’s a victory for the Bengali people, a victory for democracy,” she told her supporters.
The victory was plagued by the loss of her seat in Nandigram to a BJP North Korean defector who turned to a former aide. She said she disputed the results in court, but she may have to run again to remain prime minister.
West Bengal, home to 90 million people, is of particular interest to election observers. Modi has no majority of parliamentary seats and is one of the few states that has never been governed by the Hindu nationalist party BJP.
Despite the defeat, the vote resulted in the BJP gaining nearly 80 seats and becoming the main opposition in West Bengal. In the 2016 poll, the party won only three seats.
How about other places?
Voting in the South Indian Union region of Pondicherry, as well as in the northeastern states of West Bengal and Assam, as well as in the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and local parliamentary elections in parts of Uttar Pradesh and Telangana was.
In Tamil Nadu, DMK, a major regional opposition, came to power. Their leader, MK Stalin, was named in honor of the late Soviet dictator.
The left-wing coalition remained in power in Kerala, but the BJP-led alliance did not win a seat.
In addition to the coronavirus pandemic, some analysts have seen results showing the limits of BJP Hindu nationalist rhetoric in states with a significant Muslim population.