ASSESSMENTS

India's Prime Minister Faces His Biggest Test Yet

Mar 10, 2017 | 10:13 GMT

A picturing showing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the campaign trail in Uttar Pradesh to rally support for his Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of elections in the state, India's most populous.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit the campaign trail in Uttar Pradesh to rally support for his Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of elections in the state, India's most populous.

(SANJAY KANOJIA/AFP/Getty Images)

Elections are stealing the spotlight this year, much as they did in 2016. Upcoming votes in France, Germany, the Netherlands and perhaps Italy have put eurozone members on edge and invigorated Euroskeptic parties across Europe. But in terms of sheer scale, the biggest election is taking place in India. In Uttar Pradesh, the world's most populous state, voters headed to the polls between Feb. 11 and March 8 to elect state lawmakers. For Prime Minister Narendra Modi, however, the vote's significance goes well beyond the state's legislature. The elections in Uttar Pradesh will serve as a powerful gauge of Modi's performance and that of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with just two years to go before India's next general elections. ...

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