According to exit polls, Modi's BJP-led alliance is predicted to secure a parliamentary majority in India's upcoming election.

• Final results, expected on Tuesday, can diverge from exit poll projections.
• The world's largest democratic election, with nearly a billion eligible voters, took place in India over seven phases in the last six weeks, beginning on April 19.
• The party or coalition that obtains at least 272 votes in the 543 contested seats of the lower house will form the government.

According to local exit polls on Saturday, India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to secure a third consecutive term in power, with his Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance predicted to win a parliamentary majority.

NDTV's exit poll summary predicts that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance will win approximately 365 out of 543 seats in the lower house of parliament, with the party or coalition needing at least 272 votes to form the government. However, final results, which are expected on Tuesday, may differ from exit poll projections.

If the exit polls, which have a spotty history, are accurate, Modi will continue to be India's prime minister for another five years, having held the position since 2014.

The world's largest democratic election, with nearly a billion eligible voters, took place in India over seven phases in the last six weeks, starting on April 19. There are 543 contested seats in the lower house, and the party or coalition that wins at least 272 votes will form the government.

In the past ten years, India has experienced significant economic growth and improved its global standing under the leadership of Modi. With a population of 1.4 billion, India boasts one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, achieving a growth rate of 7.2% in the fiscal year 2022-2023. The International Monetary Fund predicts that India's economy will expand 6.8% in 2024 and 6.5% in 2025, surpassing China's projected growth rates of 5% and 4.5% in the same years.

Some economists believe that achieving a growth rate of 7%-7.5% is possible, but sustaining a very high level of growth becomes increasingly challenging as businesses expand, according to Sujan Hajra, the chief economist at Anand Rathi Share and Stock Brokers. He stated this to CNBC, emphasizing the need to prioritize infrastructure improvement to boost growth.

Harja stated that this time around, soft infrastructure, specifically improving the country's health care network, will receive more emphasis compared to hard infrastructure because a lot of work has already been done on that.

In the BJP's manifesto for the upcoming term, Modi promised to make India one of the world's top three economies, eradicate poverty, create new opportunities for growth, and combat corruption.

Although global leaders are optimistic about India's growth under Modi's leadership, critics and observers have warned that his third term could lead to more democratic backsliding. Modi has been accused of hate speech for labeling Muslims "infiltrators" at a rally just days before the election. The religious divide in India remained a contentious issue during the election, as did unemployment.

A survey by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies found that 27% of the 10,000 surveyed identified unemployment as their top concern. Additionally, over half (62%) of those surveyed reported that finding a job had become more difficult in the last five years during Modi's second term.

In March, Modi stated that he was confident the BJP and the NDA would obtain 400 seats, but analysts believe it's less important as long as he is near the 303 seats he achieved in 2019.

Malcolm Dorson, a senior portfolio manager and head of emerging markets strategy at Global X ETFs, stated that the Indian equity market will continue to have a positive outlook due to the progress and efficiency brought by the government since 2019, resulting in 303 seats.

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