New Delhi, June 5, 2024 — The 18th Indian Lok Sabha election results have revealed significant setbacks for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which secured 240 seats, falling short of the 272 needed for a majority. This outcome forces the BJP to rely on coalition partners to form the government. The Congress party, meanwhile, won 99 seats, marking their best performance in a decade.

Indian news media NDTV News reported that several high-profile BJP candidates and Union Ministers lost their seats, surprising many. Among the notable defeats, Minority Affairs Minister Smriti Irani lost her seat in Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, to Congress candidate Kishorelal Sharma by a margin of 160,000 votes. Similarly, IT Minister Rajiv Chandrasekhar was defeated in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, by Congress's Shashi Tharoor, who won by 16,000 votes.

Kaushal Kishore, the Minister of State, lost the Mohanlalganj seat in Uttar Pradesh to Samajwadi Party candidate R.K. Chowdhury by a margin of 70,292 votes. In Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh, Union Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey was defeated by Samajwadi Party's Virender Singh, losing by 21,000 votes. Additionally, Bhagwant Khooba, Union Minister for Fertilizers and Renewable Energy, lost in Bidar, Karnataka, to Sagar Khandra, the son of Karnataka minister Ishwar Khandra.

Other significant losses for the BJP include Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni, who was defeated by Samajwadi Party's Utkarsh Verma in Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh, by 34,000 votes. In Jharkhand's Khunti constituency, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda lost to Congress candidate Kalicharan Munda by nearly one and a half lakh votes. Union Minister of State for Education Subhash Sarkar was defeated in West Bengal's Bankura constituency by Trinamool Congress candidate Arup Chakraborty by about 33,000 votes.

Further adding to the BJP's woes, Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Kailash Chowdhury lost in Barmer, Rajasthan, by approximately four and a half lakh votes. In Tamil Nadu's Nilgiris constituency, Union Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying L Murugan was defeated by a DMK candidate by a margin of 2,40,000 votes.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) led by Mamata Banerjee secured a significant victory in West Bengal, winning 29 out of 42 seats. The BJP's seat count in the state dropped from 18 in the previous election to 12, despite extensive campaigning by Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah. The Congress secured one seat in the state.

With the BJP unable to secure a majority, coalition negotiations have begun in earnest. The political landscape of India is poised for significant changes as parties negotiate alliances to form the next government.