HT Take: After Uttar Pradesh, will Modi win 2019?

The Bharatiya Janata Party was set for stunning election victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand on Saturday, a personal triumph for Prime Minister Narendra Modi that could ensure his party's near-domination of politics in India. In the battleground state of Uttar Pradesh, the BJP seemed on course for the biggest-ever victory by any political party since Indira Gandhi led the Congress to 309 seats in 1980. Such an outcome also means the saffron party is set to mirror its performance in the national polls of 2014 when Modi's personal charisma and leadership won it a landslide. For Modi, who staked his personal reputation on a high-octane campaign in Uttar Pradesh, winning the politically crucial state could also boost his chances for a second term in the national elections in 2019.