India's Hindu nationalists surge ahead in election

Nearly 350 million votes must be counted by hand

NEW DELHI, India (CNN) - India's Hindu nationalists were on the brink of power in the world's largest democracy Tuesday as the Congress Party virtually threw in the towel in national elections.

Final results were expected later on Tuesday.

State-run television forecast that the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, or Indian People's Party) could win more than 250 seats, but fall short of the 273 seat majority to control the 545-member lower house of parliament.

The once-dominant Congress Party admitted that it had no hope of forming a government on its own.

Seats won in the parliamentary races decided so far:
Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies:	96
Congress Party and its allies:	90
United Front:	33
Independents and others:	16

Related stories:

• India appears headed for coalition government - February 28, 1998
• India's Hindu nationalists win local confidence vote - February 26, 1998
• Violence climbs in India election - February 23, 1998

Related sites:

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• Bharatiya Janata Party,India
• Indian National Congress
• Election Commission of India
• Press Trust of India
• IndoNet
• Indian Politics: The Economic Times
• Hindustan Times

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