From the New York Times, I'm Sabrina Tavernisee, and this is the Daily.

India, the world's largest democracy, is in the midst of a national election.

And India's Prime Minister, Norendra Modi, is running to extend his 10 years in power.

Modi has become one of the most consequential leaders in India's history,

but he is also one of its most controversial,

drawing criticism for anti-democratic practices, and charges of

religious persecution. Today, my colleague, Mujib Michelle, on the many

Nurendra modies, and which one India will get in his historic third term. It's Thursday, May 9th.

Thursday, May 9th. So Mujibb, you are covering India's elections, which is of course an enormous undertaking. It's a country of over a billion people so the

election takes weeks and we are right now in the middle of that process. So first of

all where do things stand now in the race?

Well it's hard to know exactly right now.

There's so much noise around the campaigning and both sides

Prime Minister Modi and his opposition are pitching their side.

But most observers expect Modi to be the favorite in this race because of his own popularity. This race has become a

test of the popularity of a leader who has been in power for 10 years and who has

a confidence that even if his party is struggling, his popularity can

lift up their chances. And that's what I want to talk to you about, his popularity.

I want to understand how that fits with the other thing

I think of when I think of Modi, which is his authoritarian tendencies.

And the last time you and I talked it was after a political assassination in Canada

that had been traced back to Modi's government. So how is it that Modi has managed

...