[4] This marked Modi's third term as prime minister and his first time heading a coalition government,[5] with the Telugu Desam Party of Andhra Pradesh and Janata Dal (United) of Bihar emerging as two main allies.

[17] Opinion surveys of mainstream media outlets projected a decisive victory for the BJP and its coalition, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

[18] The INDIA coalition outperformed expectations, securing 234 seats, 99 of which were won by the Congress, garnering the party the official opposition status for the first time in 10 years.

[25] The previous general election was held in April–May 2019, after which the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by the BJP, formed the union government, with Modi continuing as Prime Minister.

There is no postal or online absentee voting in India; members of the Indian diaspora are required to travel back to their home constituencies in order to cast a ballot.

[34] In Arunachal Pradesh, a polling station would be set up for the only registered voter in the village of Malogam, as electoral laws stipulate that voting booths need to be within two kilometres (1.2 mi) of any settlement.

[37] Polling stations were also set up inside a wildlife sanctuary in Kerala, in a shipping container in Gujarat, and 320 relief camps hosting nearly 59,000 people displaced during violence in Manipur.

[43] Key processes during a Lok Sabha election involved monitoring campaign expenditure, preventing the circulation of illicit goods, and ensuring adherence to the Model Code of Conduct.

Initial reports suggest that among the leading donors to political parties were some of India's largest firms such as Vedanta Limited, Bharti Airtel, RPSG Group and Essel Mining.

[103][104][105] The biggest buyer of electoral bonds was found to be Santiago Martin, the Tamil Nadu-based head of the lottery firm Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Limited, who bought bonds worth 13.68 billion rupees ($163 million) between 2020 and 2024 and made donations to the TMC, the BJP, and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which rules Tamil Nadu.

[115] Charting out the BJP's strategy for the upcoming polls, Modi said in a speech to party workers that they should reach out to every section of society, including the marginalised and minority communities, "without electoral considerations".

[122] The party held political rallies in multiple states with national leadership including Modi, BJP President J. P. Nadda and Amit Shah campaigning actively.

[123][124][125] During a campaign rally, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath described the election as a contest between "devotees of Ram" and "anti-Ram forces" and urged voters to select the former.

[127] A similar video posted on X towards voters in Karnataka was also ordered taken down by the Electoral Commission and led to police opening cases against senior BJP leaders.

[128] A complaint letter by the Samvidhan Bacchao Nagrik Abhiyan (Save the Constitution Citizens' Campaign) organisation to the Election Commission of India, signed by over 17,400 people, alleged that Modi had violated the Model Code of Conduct and the Representation of the People Act, 1951 by making a speech "aiming at not only appealing to 'communal feelings' but also instigating and aggravating hatred in the Hindus against Muslims".

Kharge attacked Kumar for frequently changing alliances and criticised the BJP for not fulfilling its promise of jobs and neglecting the country's poor and the majority.

[133] The alliance jointly held a rally at Shivaji Park in Mumbai on 17 March, a day after the end of Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.

[146] Rahul Gandhi warned that the whole of India will be on fire if the BJP wins the 2024 parliamentary elections and changes the Constitution, during an address at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan.

[151][152] The campaign received ₹1.45 crore (US$170,000) on its first day, with the top five states in amount of donations being Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Karnataka.

[164][165] The election period also coincided with investigations by authorities into state officials belonging to opposition parties, such as Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal, who is under investigation for alleged corruption in the allocation of liquor licences, and Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, who was arrested in February 2024 for allegedly facilitating an illegal land sale.

[175] The BJP proposed a 'GYAN' formula consisting of four segments – Garib (poor), Yuva (youth), Annadata (farmers) and Nari (women) in its manifesto.

[201][202] Some noticeable points in the manifesto include (apart from above promises released earlier) the: Narendra Modi, on 21 April during an election campaign rally in Rajasthan, falsely claimed that former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh once said "Muslims have the first right on the country's resources".

[206] Amit Shah accused the opposition of tampering with his video, leading to the registration of an FIR and a summons being issued to Telangana's Chief Minister Revanth Reddy.

[211] In June 2024, Time noted throughout the elections, associates and supporters of the BJP circulated fake news in order to discredit its opponents and spread hatred against religious minorities.

[300] During Phase 7 of voting, a mob looted election material from a polling booth and dumped it into a pond in Kultali, Jaynagar in West Bengal.

[301] In Uttar Pradesh, at least 33 election workers, including security and sanitation staff, died of heat stroke, along with a voter waiting in line in Ballia.

[333] Independent MPs from Sangli and Purnia Vishal Patil and Pappu Yadav, both of whom are primary members of the Congress party, extended their support to it after the election, effectively increasing the opposition alliance's tally to 236.

[338] Leaders and officials of Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, China, Comoros, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Eswatini, European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Latvia, Lithuania, the Maldives, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Moldova, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Serbia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor Leste, Uganda, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, Vietnam, Yemen and Zambia congratulated Modi on the victory.

[339][340][341][342][343][344][345][346] The benchmark BSE Sensex and Nifty50 indices hit intraday record highs and the Indian rupee strengthened after the exit polls were released.

[347] Rahul Gandhi subsequently called for an investigation, saying that Modi, Amit Shah and finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had misled investors into buying stocks before the release of the election results on 4 June in anticipation of a landslide victory by the BJP.