Exit polls show that 'Abki baar Modi Sarkar'
Exit polls showed, with his opposition party and its allies forecast to sweep to a parliamentary majority in the world's biggest ever election.
The projections suggest that the BJP is set to record its best-ever performance, with some polls giving it well over 200 seats. In contrast, the Congress is headed for its worst-ever showing in a Lok Sabha election with a tally of less than 100 seats, the exit polls said.
Modi, who rose from humble roots as a tea vendor's son, was shunned by Western nations for years after the bloodshed in Gujarat, where he has been chief minister since 2001.
However, his rise on the national stage forced a rethink among the European Union and the United States, whose ambassadors have met him to patch up relations. Modi denies the accusations against him and a Supreme Court inquiry found no evidence to prosecute him.
A majority of 272 seats in parliament is needed to form a government, although that is often achieved with outside support from regional parties.
Pre-election opinion polls and post-voting exit polls both have a patchy record. India's voting, spread over five weeks to reach the country's 815 million voters and move security forces around its varied terrain, ended at 6.00 pm on Monday. Results are due on May 16.
