Care needs to be taken to ensure that, while opposition to the government by political parties is part of a democratic system, such criticism should not affect the economic trajectory of India or the country’s societal stability.
NEW DELHI: Anti-Modi elements across time zones failed during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in their efforts at denying a third term to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by sustained efforts at keeping the BJP seat tally to 220 or lower, a figure forecast as the peak of the BJP tally pre-election by no less a personage than Rahul Gandhi, who is now Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. Subsequently, they sought a clean sweep against the BJP in the just concluded state assembly polls and bypolls. The calculation was that such a decisive defeat would lead to a revolt in the BJP against the leadership of PM Modi, something that is itself illusory, as his hold over the party goes far beyond such calculations. The country has changed, the BJP has changed, and Modi represents that change. They failed once again in their efforts at restricting the BJP tally, for the ruling party returned to power in Haryana and Maharashtra, and all but swept the board in UP bypolls. Given the reality that it is PM Modi who is the architect of the policy of keeping the Indo-Pacific secure through a confluence of interests with key democracies, the Sino-Wahhabi lobby has not given up the push to ensure that PM Modi does not complete his third term. Now the focus has shifted to developments involving Sambhal, Manipur and a prominent Indian business house, each of which is sought to be linked to PM Modi when the facts are different.
Once the strategic situation in a world marked by Cold War 2.0 stabilizes under the captaincy of Narendra Modi, double digit growth will come to India and remain so for a generation, bringing the country closer to Middle Income status. As for the Opposition parties, they are still doing what failed as an electoral tactic from 2014 onwards, which is to zero in on PM Modi as the target of their attack. Thus far, each such attack has made his political position stronger, and yet the effort continues in the same direction. Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi has emerged as the mastermind of the Modi-centred strategy. It may have failed thus far, but he and other political leaders in the Opposition are relying on the three issues mentioned above (Manipur, Sambhal and the controversy over a prominent business house) to weaken PM Modi politically this time around.
For a week, both Houses of Parliament have been paralysed as a consequence of disruption caused by three issues (a) the Sambhal matter (b) the situation in Manipur and (c) the charge-sheet against some employees of a prominent Indian business group by a US attorney in a New York court. Where the situation in Manipur is concerned, on humanitarian grounds, large numbers of Myanmar citizens were permitted to enter into Manipur following the February 2021 coup by the military against Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. On the ground of protection of human rights, the exodus of citizens of Myanmar into India was permitted. Several of those admitted were armed and trained militants under the supervision of the PLA, and very soon, they began to wreak havoc on a border state where the situation had earlier been under control. Control of the border is now being established, and efforts are on to locate those involved in the violence, which has been sought to be given a communal colour, a “battle of Hindu Meiteis against Christian Kukis”. The reality is that Meiteis and Kukis have been living amicably side by side for a long while, with intermarriage not being rare between them. Christians are as much a part of the Union of India as those belonging to other faiths, but this has not stopped the Sino-Wahhabi lobby in the US and other western countries from using the Manipur incidents of externally-sponsored violence as “evidence of persecution of Christians”. Stray intemperate remarks by a few hot-headed individuals have been magnified and sought to be given the appearance of mainstream Hindu feelings, which is not the case.
Where the Sambhal matter is concerned, there are many within the Hindu community who seek the restoration of only the three holy sites of the Hindus into what they were before being plundered and destroyed by Aurangzeb (whose rule lasted from 1658 to 1707). Were the effort instead to be the impossible task of restoration of the many temples destroyed by Mughal rulers during the centuries of their rule, amicably getting back Kashi and Mathura (after Ayodhya was given amicably back following a Supreme Court verdict) would become much more difficult. Undoing history in its entirety is an impossibility, and what is needed is to focus on the principal concerns, so that an overall atmosphere of tranquility remains between different communities. The Supreme Court is now considering the matter, and the decision of the court is awaited, as the government is certain to point out should the matter get discussed in Parliament during the coming week. As for the business house that finds itself involved in an imbroglio with some authorities in New York, as has been clarified by the Ministry of External Affairs, it is a matter involving the Justice Department of the US and a private company, and the Government of India has no role in the matter. No information has been provided to the Embassy of India in Washington or the Consulate in New York on the matter, nor has any request been made for arrests of any Indian national in the case.
It is likely that the ruling benches, aware of the strong case they have, may go forward with discussions on the three subjects mentioned above, which are Manipur, Sambhal and the travails faced by the business house, despite there being no link between some unfortunate developments in each and the Prime Minister. In a context where the Sino-Wahhabi lobby is seeking to destabilize the polity of India well before the next Lok Sabha polls are due in 2029, care needs to be taken to ensure that, while opposition to the government by political parties is part of a democratic system, such criticism should not affect the economic trajectory of India or the country’s societal stability. The coming week will reveal whether such an expectation has been met or not. The fact remains that PM Modi is on course to complete his present term despite continuous efforts by powerful lobbies to disrupt him.