On June 4, 2024, the day India chose to bring Mr Modi a few notches down, India Today grilled Axis My India's Pradeep Gupta on why there was a massive difference in the pollster's exit polls and the actual results. Mr Pradeep broke down on TV, but to be fair to the man, his exit polls were rather spot on bar some variance. Many chose to describe the Indian electorate as uniquely unpredictable because one never knows what they will do. However, is this true?

Many media outlets have stated that there is rejoicing across the country, though insignificant it may be, that Modi has lost his absolute dominance. India is now breathing in fresh air, freed from the decade-long stranglehold that it was in. Such opinions are enough to describe why the nation chose to divest the PM of his pride.

As he began his campaign, Mr Modi had confidently raised the slogan 400 paar, but it fizzled down to just 290. The BJP silenced, marked, threatened, blackmailed, jailed, and rode roughshod on the opposition. It even eliminated every other candidate except its own in Surat. Even with the support of the Godi Media, the business moguls and the state machinery, he failed to garner even a simple majority for the BJP.

The citizens have come to the stark realisation that Modi's Guarantees are just empty vessels which can be banged from the rooftops to chase away COVID but contain nothing. To quote what MK Gandhi thought of Cripps's promise of Dominion Status to India, in return for war support, the guarantees were "post-dated cheque(s) drawn on a failing bank". The promises could never be encashed because there was no truth behind them. The people have become cognizant of the truth that Modi's claim of a developed India is hogwash. Though there has been economic growth, every other indicator has been screaming that the country has been declining on all fronts.

The benefits of the country's development have, far from flowed, not even trickled down to the lower strata of the society. More and more people, especially the youth, are unemployed. The Hindutva brigade was burning the country's minorities as Mr Modi went on his safaris. There are innumerable instances of injustices perpetrated on the nation and its people.

While it is true that Modi still sits in the PM's seat, it won't be as comfortable this time. The coalition and the opposition will be potholes that keep him from enjoying a comfortable ride. If rumours are to be trusted, there is also some dissatisfaction against him within his party. The members will become vociferous as the halo surrounding him, which suppressed them, fades into darkness.

The results were not unpredictable; they were well within expectations. It was the will of the nation.