If the first few days of the 18th Lok Sabha are any indication, India’s self confessed, “non-biological” Prime Minister Narendra Modi still believes he has “divine” sanction to exercise absolute power. Modi is refusing to accept the mandate of the 2024 general election. This year, the Bharatiya Janata Party lost 63 seats and scored only 240. The party also lost its flagship town of Ayodhya and fell short of the majority mark; Modi almost lost Varanasi. Voters have cut Modi to size. But the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance seems to believe that 240 is the new 400.
“Abki baar 400 paar” was the BJP’s campaign slogan, and despite the results, it seems to believe it has achieved that target. Modi and his ministers are still blithely swanning around, flaunting an arrogance of power. The reality is, Modi is entirely reliant on allies to cling to his chair.
