Modi readies for third term after securing coalition

NEW DELHI, June 6 (AFP); Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was preparing Thursday to be sworn in for a third term after an unexpectedly close election that forced his party into a coalition government.

Modi's Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had ruled for the past decade with an outright majority, had been expecting another landslide win.

But results of the six-week election released Tuesday ran counter to exit polls, seeing the BJP lose its majority and sending it into quick-fire talks to lock in an alliance that would allow it to govern.

That 15-member grouping -- the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) coalition -- announced late Wednesday that they had agreed to form a government.

"We all unanimously choose respected NDA leader Narendra Modi as our leader," a BJP-issued alliance statement said.

The alliance has 293 seats in parliament, giving it control of the 543-seat body.

Indian media reports said Modi would be sworn in as prime minister on Saturday.

Analysts said Modi's reliance on coalition partners means he faces the prospect of a far tougher-than-expected third term.

"It will force Modi to take the point of view of others -- we shall see more democracy and a healthy parliament," said Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, who has written a biography of Modi.