India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is set to retain populous Uttar Pradesh and is leading in regional elections in three other states in what is being seen as an endorsement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity before the general election in 2024. In elections over the past month, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) that governs the national capital territory of Delhi is headed for a historic sweep in the northern state of Punjab, as per available trends. The BJP is also holding advantage in Goa and Manipur but is short of the majority mark. The BJP coalition was leading in more than 270 of the 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh, Indian news channels reported on Thursday citing counting data, while the Election Commission said the party was ahead in enough seats to hold onto power. "Everyone will he surprised by the mandate because we are going to win with a thumping majority," said Uttar Pradesh BJP spokesman Rakesh Tripathi. Uttar Pradesh is home to about a fifth of India's 1.35 billion people and sends the most legislators to parliament of any state. The key northern state is governed by Yogi Adityanath, a highly divisive Hindu monk-turned-politician whose rise has been marked by anti-Muslim rhetoric and violence. Adityanath, 49, rose from humble beginnings to become head priest of an important Hindu temple and founded a vigilante youth group. "The BJP's big win in Uttar Pradesh shows consolidation of the Hindutva project," journalist and political analyst Arati R Jerath told Al Jazeera. Hindutva refers to a century-old right-wing movement that aims to create an ethnic Hindu state out of a multicultural India, home to more than 200 million Muslims. The opposition Congress appeared to have lost the "grain bowl" state of Punjab to the upstart party in a major blow to the Gandhi dynasty's once-mighty party. The final tally for the five states where voters went to the polls over a month to cast their ballots was expected by Thursday evening at the earliest. For decades, Uttar Pradesh was a stronghold of the main opposition Congress party, but it has been unable to stem a slide in its popularity over recent years. The BJP's win in Uttar Pradesh is a "big endorsement of the kind of aggressive and hard-nosed politics that he [Modi] has been pursuing", journalist and Modi biographer Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay said. — Agencies
