it is only the second time that an indian prime minister has won a third term. it is the win of our commitment to a developed india , narendra modi told his supporters. but it isn t the victory he wanted, winning fewer seats than the last election, which will damage the air of invincibility that has surrounded him and the bjp over the past ten years. perhaps the biggest shock came from ayodhya, where prime minister modi inaugurated a grand hindu temple injanuary at a site that had been disputed by hindus and muslims. ..expected to galvanise hindu voters, but the ruling party was defeated here by a large margin. this is how the opposition congress took in the results, with an almost equal fervour. it is rare to see this kind ofjubilation amid the losing side, but that is because over the past ten years the congress party has suffered humiliating election defeats. and what that has resulted in is a party whose confidence was so low that they didn t believe that they could actu
elections have reaffirmed the brand of indian democracy, as you yourself in your report suggested. so the indian democracy and that sense, especially in the last ten years, was under siege, at least in perceptions under the west and everywhere else in the world. so that reaffirms that the indian democracy is widespread and robust. as far as great powers are confirmed, great issues like the ukraine crisis for that matter, i don t think congress or the bjp would ve made a different choice. you know, russia is an important player for india, choice. you know, russia is an important playerfor india, and ukraine isjust too important playerfor india, and ukraine is just too far. and lastly, american interests, vis a vis china, would remain robust in india. so india really had no interest to go out of the way on ukraine. so