Daily Times

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) suffered a humiliating defeat in the Bihar State Assembly elections due to the extremism and religious intolerance that went on the rise after Narendra Modi came to power in India. On May 26, 2014, Narendra Modi took oath of office as India’s 15th Prime Minister (PM), 10 days after a landslide election victory and heaviest mandate in 30 years. But within nine months of the BJP’s unprecedented win, Narendra Modi’s halo started disappearing and his party was routed in the New Delhi elections. The BJP’s defeat in New Delhi was not only a political setback but also proved a prelude to the weakening of the BJP. Disapproval for the BJP and its slogans is reflective of public sentiments against the party’s support for the communal agenda of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) taking roots in Indian polity and society.
Narendra Modi faces a dilemma: if he continues to facilitate and promote corporate interests, it will create unrest among the great majority of the people living below the poverty line, as the fruits of Indian growth rate are not reaching the grass roots level. In case he neglects corporate interests, foreign investment will not come. Of course, he has disappointed the people in general, as he has failed to give a boost to the economy. Secondly, India has all along been claiming itself the largest democracy and a secular state but under Narendra Modi it is neither a democracy nor a secular state. Showing utter disregard to India’s Constitution, he has given free hand to Hindu extremists who want to convert India into a Hindu state. The reason is that Modi is a hardcore Hindu who believes in the Hindutva doctrine.
His opposition to Nepal’s secular Constitution is reflective of his aversion to secularism. Nepal’s Constitution has the provisions: “No discrimination shall be made against any citizen in the application of general laws on grounds of religion, colour, caste, tribe, sex, disability, status of health, marital status, pregnancy, financial status, origin, language or region, ideological conviction or any of these.” This is the first Constitution framed by the elected representatives and passed by a clear majority with 507 of the 598 constituent assembly members. However, India views Nepal’s Constitution as unrepresentative on the pretext that 60 Mehdeshi and some other members had boycotted the vote. India’s interference has resulted in political turbulence in Nepal after the election of veteran communist leader K P Sharma Oli in October 2015 as the country’s first PM under the new Constitution. He had secured 338 votes out of a total of 598, defeating Sushil Koirala of the Nepali Congress.
Thanks to Narendra Modi’s posturing, China has broken India’s monopoly of oil supply to Nepal. It appears that China will be the main supplier of commodities to Nepal through the land port between Tibet (China) and Nepal. Since democracy is considered the best system of governance, it has to evolve within the country and should not be imposed through gunboat diplomacy or machinations and maneuverings by external forces. Of course, there have been voices in India in the past also when India tried to interfere in Nepal. During the Congress government in December 2004, the Communist Party of India (Maoist) had observed: “The United Progressive Alliance government, headed by Dr Manmohan Singh, exhibited its expansionist fangs against the people of Nepal right from the day it came to power.”
Narendra Modi’s past, especially his association with fanatical Hindu organisations, will continue to haunt him wherever he goes. Earlier, he was banned by the US State Department for entering the US and his visa was revoked in 2005 over his role in deadly riots in Gujarat. In view of India being a 1.2 billion market and a large buyer of arms, the US and European countries wanted to deal with it whether they liked Modi or not. However, Modi is drawing flak in India for the plight of minorities and religious intolerance under his watch. Emulating 41 novelists, writers and poets who had decided to return their awards, 107 scientists protested against the intolerance towards minorities. Veteran Indian scientist P M Bhargava declared to return the awards, including Padma Bhushan, as the Modi government was supporting communalists and fringe groups that were out to divide the country based on religion.
Narendra Modi will be visiting the UK from November 14 to 17. Recently, the Kashmiris protested outside the Indian High Commission in London against PM Narendra Modi’s forthcoming UK visit. They observed a black day and staged the protest. The demonstrators chanted slogans against the illegal occupation of Kashmir by India. The demonstration was organised by Kashmiri political and human rights organisations in which Kashmiris from across the UK and other European countries participated. As a matter of fact, all minorities in India are suffering immensely under Modi’s repressive regime. Already, there are separatist movements in more than a dozen states. In Kashmir, the entire Muslim population is in protest against the Modi government’s repression and his policy to change the demography of Indian Held Kashmir (IHK).
Ahead of Modi’s recent visit to IHK, authorities suspended mobile phone services, hundreds of activists were arrested and Kashmiri leaders were confined to their homes. Such an internal situation would have an adverse impact on Modi’s much-touted economic programme. Conscientious Indian writers, poets, politicians and a large section of people have realised that Modi can put India on the road to perdition. Over the last few months, the intolerance row has rocked the country. Not just opposition parties but people from all walks of life have come forward to raise their voices over rising intolerance. Modi’s halo is disappearing and the defeat of the BJP in Bihar will have repercussions on the BJP within the party as well as within the coalition.

The writer is a freelance columnist. He can be reached at mjamil1938@hotmail.com