The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) may fall short of a majority and would consider the prospect of a coalition, Ram Madhav, the national general secretary of the party told Bloomberg ahead of the final phases of the Lok Sabha elections.

Madhav's forecast is far below what the senior leaders, including finance minister Arun Jaitley and the party president Amit Shah have publicly claimed. The duo believe that the party will win the ongoing elections by a clear majority in the 543-seat parliament.

"If we get 271 seats on our own, we will be very happy. With the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) we will have a comfortable majority," Madhav said in an interview with Bloomberg on Saturday.

The BJP will make up for any expected loss of seats in the northern states by making new ground in Odisha, West Bengal, and the Northeastern states, Madhav said, adding that the party will focus on its pro-growth policies once it returns to power.

The BJP will bank on its economic reforms and not one based on populist cash handouts, Madhav told Bloomberg.

The fifth of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections is underway today, with 51 constituencies in seven states going to the polls.

The final phase will be held on May 19 with counting of votes on May 23.