DOHA: The spectacular return to power of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by Narendra Modi in India in the general elections whose results were declared on Thursday has caused both consternation and concern among many Indian expatriates in Qatar.
Many of them are apprehensive that the brute majority of the Hindu nationalist party in the polls would further marginalise minorities in the world’s largest democracy and increase their sense of insecurity.
At the time of writing this, as the counting of votes entered the final stage, it was a Modi wave sweeping through India, with the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) led by the Congress facing a humiliating defeat. In the 542-seat parliament, the NDA is set to win more than 343 seats, up from 336 in 2014, surprising even party cadres. The UPA is unlikely to win some 90 seats.
The election results have thrown two more surprises. First, while almost the entire nation overwhelmingly voted for the BJP, in Kerala, the home state of a majority of Indian expatriates in Qatar, voters emphatically rejected the saffron party.
Out of the 20 seats in the state, 19 were bagged by the Congress-lead United Democratic Front (UDF). The BJP did not have any seats from the state in the previous parliament, but is expected to win at least a single seat this time – from Thiruvananthapuram. The UDF’s sweep is seen as a stunning rejection of the BJP in India’s most literate state.
Muslims and Christians constitute half the population of the state and both communities rallied behind the Congress to thwart a BJP government at the centre. Secondly, the Left Democratic Front, which is in power in Kerala, was almost wiped out, winning just one out of 20 seats.
Several members from the minority communities The Doha Globe spoke to said they were worried after the stunning victory of the BJP.
“I would say this is a black day for Indian Muslims. I thought only Muslims were worried, but I understand even members of the Christian community are equally worried, which is the message I am getting from my colleagues belonging to that community in my office,” said Zubair Valiyaparambil, an expatriate from India.
“All the so-called independent institutions in India including the Election Commission and the judiciary have become biased in favour of the BJP,” he lamented.
The comment reflects the general mood of the members of the minority communities working in Qatar who have been watching developments in India with concern.
At the same time, supporters of Modi blame other political parties for the BJP’s anti-Muslim image. “We expected this victory and it’s an endorsement of the policies of Narendra Modi. The anti-Muslim image of the BJP is a creation of other parties, especially the CPI(M) in Kerala, who are treating the minority communities as a vote bank,” said Prashant Kumar, General Secretary of the Overseas Friends of India in Qatar, which is linked to the BJP.
The BJP has got more votes than in 2014 in Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal.
Interestingly, among the winners from the BJP candidates is Pragya Singh Thakur, a terror accused in the Malegaon blasts case who recently praised Nathuram Godse, the killer of Mahatma Gandhi, as a patriot.
“The election results are very unfortunate. This is due to the communal polarisation created by the BJP in the last five years, and as a result, we can also see a polarisation of the minorities. Both are not good for Indian secularism,” said Sunil Kumar, President of Sanskriti, a Left-affiliated expat organisation in Qatar.
“At this rate, the Congress will be eliminated in India, and would become restricted to Kerala. The leadership of the Congress must be blamed for this. The new government, having scored a victory of this magnitude, now should think of taking the minorities along with them and protect them,” Manmadhan Mampally, ex-president of Q-Mass, an expat organisation, said.
“This victory is the result of a Hindu polarisation in North India, but I don’t think minorities can be suppressed. In South India, the BJP has succeeded in only one state. I also think the electronic voting machines must be subjected to greater scrutiny,” said P A Mubarak, a senior journalist.
“The opposition has failed to counter the false propaganda unleashed by the BJP, especially through the digital media which they are dominating. I think bad days are ahead both for Indian economy and secularism,” said Pradaush Kumar, an executive member of Adayalam, an expat organisation.
Many say that while minorities were considered vote banks in previous elections, whose support could decide the outcome of the polls, the latest elections have shown that they are irrelevant as a community due to the polarisation of the majority community.