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Elections in India: Millions of poor stun Narendra Modi in setback for BJP
Earlier this year, Narendra Modi hailed the opening of a huge new Hindu temple as a once in a millennium turning point in Indian history. The lavish event, broadcast across the country, was timed to generate a wave of religious fervor that would carry him overwhelmingly to a third term as prime minister.
But less than five months later, voters in that northern Indian district roundly rejected Modi’s party in national elections, part of a broader wave of discontent with his decade-old rule in relatively poorer parts of the country. Once seen as invincible, Modi and his Hindu-dominated Bharatiya Janata Party are now dependent on allies for the first time since taking power in 2014.