Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist party headed for a stunning victory in state elections in politically significant Maharashtra while the opposition seemed about to clinch victory in mineral-rich Jharkhand. Polling in the two states has been widely seen as a test of Modi’s popularity after his party returned to power five months ago in national elections truncated for a third term without a parliamentary majority. India’s Election Commission said Saturday that Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies led with 215 of 288 seats in Maharashtra, India’s wealthiest stateThe Congress party and its allies, which rule eastern Jharkhand state, were leading in 47 of 81 seats.
