The polling of 970 million Indian voters, which began on April 19, ends at the end of an election campaign marked by hateful and Islamophobic rhetoric from outgoing Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
I am very worried. India is in bad shape. If this continues, the country will go down a very dark path
Yale University lecturer Sushant Singh was dropped in a video interview from Delhi.
He had everything to enjoy the pleasant conditions of India. He was an officer in the army for 20 years. It comes from the north of the country and its name is Hindu. But the former journalist, analyst and speaker chose to decry his country’s slide.
Someone has to dare to speak up regardless of the consequences. I know these consequences. But I must speak, or the country will fall. India cannot be allowed to disintegrate without fighting.
Sushant Singh is a lecturer at Yale University.
Photo: Courtesy
An expression describing India The world’s largest democracy
However determined and regularly communicated by the Prime Minister of India.
Narendra Modi’s ten years at the head of the most populous nation on earth have been summed up by human rights groups as: authoritarian drift, exploitation of justice against political opponents, suppression of press freedom, ethnic divisions.
While the state of the Indian economy, a pillar of the outgoing prime minister’s popularity in recent years, has been worrying, Narendra Modi is increasingly playing the hate card amid an election campaign.
Inflation eased but remained at 4.83% in April. The unemployment rate stood at 8.1% in April, while 83% of the unemployed were youth.
Anti-Muslim sentiment has grown in India over the past decade under the Modi regime. But Modi himself tried not to make these provocative comments. But for the first time, he attacked Muslims directly and demonized them
Supporting freelance journalist Alison Jaffrey in an interview from her home in Delhi.
Freelance journalist Alison Jaffrey.
Photo: Courtesy
Also, a very large section of people now consider the EC to be pro-Modi’s party. They have failed to stop this hate speech
He adds.
During an election rally in Rajasthan on April 21, to loud applause, Narendra Modi described them as Muslim Indians without naming them. of intruders
And Among those who have more children.
When in power, the Indian National Congress [principal parti d’opposition] He said he has the first right to control the country’s resources. That is, they will collect all your wealth and distribute it to those who have more children. They distribute them to intruders. Thinking of giving your hard-earned money to hackers? Do you approve of this?
Narendra Modi launched on April 21.
The comments were roundly condemned by human rights groups, but did not surprise Sushant Singh, who recalled that Narendra Modi had made a career out of such extreme nationalist hate speech.
When he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat leading an anti-Muslim agenda in Gujarat, he used this language and rhetoric very regularly, targeting Indian Muslims in the most vile terms.
Says Sushant Singh.
This language has been watered down since he became Prime Minister. What we have seen this time is a resurgence of this Islamophobic language. Calling opposition leaders terrorists or Islamic terrorists or reverting to this language of giving your wealth to Muslims.
Supporters of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) gather to listen to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a rally in Allahabad, India on May 21, 2024.
Photo: Getty Images / Ritesh Shukla
Dictatorship drifts and the international community turns a blind eye
Narendra Modi’s hate speech adds to his long record as a populist, nationalist and authoritarian leader, says Sushant Singh.
In its 2024 Report on Independence, Freedom House India is a relatively independent democracy. The organization condemns the implementation of discriminatory policies, increasing persecution of Muslims, harassment of journalists and marginalization of the lower caste (dalit).
For its part, Reporters Without Borders ranked India 161ste Ranking of 180 countries for press freedom in 2023.
China has become the focal point of Western concerns, particularly US concerns, and India is seen as the only viable counterweight to China in Asia. It means that India can get a big pass and everyone looks the other way, no matter what that country has done or wanted to do against the Sikh community in New York or Canada.
Sushant Singh believes.
Until last year, Sushant Singh was a researcher and researcher at India’s leading think tank. Center for Policy ResearchAn organization that is highly criticized by Narendra Modi and considered liberal.
The franchise of the International Fundraising Center and its tax exemption were suspended. The organization’s bank accounts were frozen. Result: Expulsion of 80 prominent researchers and analysts including Sushant Singh.
People at the center. The government sent police and tax officials. They are taking legal action against us. They chased us. I am also a media consultant Caravan. In February we published an article, a detailed, documented article with pictures about the torture and killing of four Kashmiri Muslims by the Indian Army”,”text”:”Only 10 left in the middle. The government sent police and tax officials. They are taking legal action against us. They chased us. I am also a consulting editor for The Caravan. In February we published an article, a detailed, documented article with pictures about the torture and killing of four Kashmiri Muslims by the Indian Army”}}”>There are only 10 people in the center. The government sent police and tax officials. They are taking legal action against us. They chased us. I am also a media consultant Caravan. In February we published a detailed, well-documented article on the torture and killing of four Kashmiri Muslims by the Indian Army.
Says Sushant Singh.
A few days later, the government said new IT rules required the message to be removed from the website. We challenged this decision in court but had to remove the story.
The pressures on the media, civil society, think tanks and the press are unimaginable.
Intimidation and harassment are not limited to Indian journalists. According to Human Rights WatchForeign writers, journalists, academics and activists are increasingly being denied visas and access to India, ostensibly for political reasons.
Indian consulates in Ottawa and Taipei did not respond to the Radio-Canada crew’s visa requests to participate in the election campaign. Officials in Taipei said the Indian government in Delhi should directly decide whether to issue visas.
Economic growth, but at what cost?
Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BBJ) was first elected to lead India in 2014, promising economic growth and job creation.
Today, India is enjoying the strongest economic growth among the world’s major economies with a rate of 8.4% recorded in the third quarter of last year.
Politics Made in India”,”text”:”Made in India”}}”>Made in India
The technology sector implemented by the Modi government, among others, helped drive this growth.
The most populous country on the planet is taking up more space and enjoying growing influence on the world stage. Last year, India welcomed the world to the G20 summit, which made many Indians proud.
It’s not just unhappy people. A large section of the Indian society still considers Modi to be inhuman
Alison Jaffrey says.
India has developed infrastructure. Many things have improved. I will not deny. But I think this growth comes at a cost. I think inequality in our society has increased in many ways. There is unemployment. The gap between the rich and the poor has widened. The marginalized people are the poor, the most marginalized people in India. As the rich are a minority, it constitutes the largest segment of India’s population
He believes.
An Indian fishmonger protects himself from the sun with an umbrella.
Photo: AFP / Arun Shankar
Imagine having all the money in the world with some cash and peanuts in this 52 degree sun this week.
Various studies and research works, whether Pew Research Center or the Population Research on India’s Consumer EconomyY60% of India’s population lives on less than $5 a day.
So Narendra Modi and the PBJ With an approval rating above 70%, especially among the lower castes and the less fortunate, going for re-election?
It is true that their life in India was never great. Whether Modi is there or not, their lives are always terrible
Says Sushant Singh.
Even among the lower castes, there is a certain sense of Hindu pride that has gripped a section of the population. Modi’s campaign throughout this election has increasingly targeted the grassroots of the anti-Muslim population. Earlier, India was not a fully fledged democracy. India had huge failures, but those failures were not as bad as what we see now.
A large section of diaspora Indians say they are worried if Narendra Modi is re-elected. A speech that resonates among analysts and human rights organizations.
Independent journalist Alishan Jaffrey says she has faith in the people of India. He likes to be optimistic, but he also has no illusions.
Look, I personally think it is very difficult for any political party to change the system where we are now, even if Modi comes back to power or another government takes over. It is very convenient for a political party to have such a system, which can easily suppress dissenting voices and tell people that there is no room for anyone who criticizes you and anyone who disagrees with your agenda. A big conspiracy against the country.
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