How 2024 was never a done deal

The exit pollsters owe us an apology, and so does the Congress to the Election Commission

Many articles, and even books, were written about the expected “Modi victory of 2024” before the elections got fully underway, but we can now confirm that they were substantially wrong. With hindsight, we can say that 2024 was never a done deal for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), given the broader social and economic problems that remained unsolved, particularly unemployment and rural economic weakness. So, however much the markets may have hoped for stability in politics and economic policy, that is not going to be the case.

To retain power, the BJP will now be dependent on regional allies like the