Modi loses majority in India election, but will still form govt

(Sharecast News) - Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has lost its parliamentary majority in India's general election, leaving the prime minister to negotiate with regional coalition partners in order to form a government.

As vote counting was completed on Wednesday the landslide majority the hard-right Hindu nationalist Modi's prediction of a landslide failed to materialise.

The party lost 62 seats, bringing its total down to 240, below the 272 required for a parliamentary majority as voters pushed back against Modi for the first time since he was elected in 2014.

However, it will form a coalition with regional allies - called the national democratic alliance (NDA), giving Modi a third term in office.

The opposition alliance, known as INDIA, far outperformed expectations, with the 28-party group winning more than 230 seats in its first campaign as it attempted to unseat the controversial Modi.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com