The New York Times reported on the election of democracy in India

Ayodhya, India: The Birthplace of the Hindus: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Manifestation of Nationalism

But as the election results began rolling out on Tuesday, it was as if someone snapped their fingers and India emerged from a long period of hypnosis. Mr. Modi, who recently claimed that his birth was not a “biological” event but that he had been sent by God, failed to even deliver his party a simple parliamentary majority, leaving it unable to form a government on its own. He will probably serve another five-year term as prime minister. But his spell over voters seems to have been broken, and with it “Hindutva” — the B.J.P.’s project to turn India into a majoritarian Hindu-nationalist state — may have finally hit a roadblock.

Millions of people who care about secular democracy were scared by the announcement of India’s election results.

Back in January, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India looked all but unstoppable, he visited the small city of Ayodhya for the unofficial start of his campaign to win a third term. The location was freighted with symbolism. The site where Hindus believe the Hindu god Ram was born had been the location of a temple for decades. A mosque was built in 1528 by a Mughal emperor and there was already a house of worship on the spot. The mosque was torn down in 1992 and a mob set off riots that killed 2,000 people. The ruins were a flashpoint of religious tensions in India for decades.

It was a showcase for the triumph of Modi’s promises to build the temple when he opened it. It seemed like a strong election-year message for a politician who built his career on Hindu nationalism and building a muscular new India. The event implied that Modi was unlike others in that he kept his promises.