{"id":1924,"date":"2024-04-17T11:41:35","date_gmt":"2024-04-17T11:41:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/17\/narendra-modi-indias-popular-but-controversial-leader-seeking-a-transformative-third-term\/"},"modified":"2024-04-17T11:41:35","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T11:41:35","slug":"narendra-modi-indias-popular-but-controversial-leader-seeking-a-transformative-third-term","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/17\/narendra-modi-indias-popular-but-controversial-leader-seeking-a-transformative-third-term\/","title":{"rendered":"Narendra Modi: India\u2019s popular but controversial leader seeking a transformative third term"},"content":{"rendered":"
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi once famously made a simple election promise: \u201cgood days are coming\u201d. <\/p>\n
To his adoring supporters, it\u2019s a vision of a future now finally within reach should Modi and his right-wing Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secure an emphatic and rare third consecutive term at this month\u2019s nationwide election. <\/p>\n
At his rallies, tens of thousands gather in near frenzied religious devotion in support of a man whose policies they say have transformed the lives of ordinary Indians \u2013 and helped enshrine the nascent promise of social mobility in a country still riven by caste divisions. <\/p>\n
Modi projects himself as an outsider from humble origins. Born as the son of a tea seller in a small town in Gujarat, he does not fit neatly within the often privately educated, resolutely metropolitan, English-speaking template set by many previous Indian leaders. <\/p>\n
The 74-year-old is unmarried, has no children, and seemingly shuns expensive material possessions in favor of a simple, ascetic lifestyle. <\/p>\n
And though little is shared about Modi the man \u2013 his private life is assiduously guarded by a formidable public relations team \u2013 his persona resonates with many. <\/p>\n
His political rise in some ways mirrors India\u2019s own path from a newly independent nation freed from the shackles of colonialism to a confident, secure country inching ever closer to superpower status \u2013 albeit one wracked by deep and abiding fault lines. <\/p>\n
Modi, his opponents argue, has done little to soothe those divisions. <\/p>\n
Religious persecution and Islamophobia have increased sharply on his watch, with many accusing the prime minister of tacitly endorsing sectarianism as a means of further bolstering his Hindu-nationalist credentials, while diverting from policy failures \u2013 such as youth unemployment, which now stands at close to 50% among 20- to 24-year-olds. <\/p>\n
Among India\u2019s minorities, particularly the country\u2019s 230 million Muslims, the prospect of another five-years for a prime minister who calls himself the \u201cchowkidar\u201d \u2013 or watchman \u2013 remains deeply concerning. <\/p>\n
Many don\u2019t believe Modi is watching out for them \u2013 instead, they say they are marginalized as he fulfills his party\u2019s dream of transforming secular, pluralistic India into a majoritarian Hindu state. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs he goes toward seeking a third term, Prime Minister Modi has positioned himself as a head priest alongside the head of the political system \u2026 the protector of the nation (and), as the creator of a Hindu-first nation,\u201d said Saba Naqvi, author of \u201cThe Saffron Storm: From Vajpayee to Modi.\u201d <\/p>\n
This seemingly potent, populist mix of economic empowerment and Hindu nationalism has proved to be a successful electoral formula for Modi, confounding longstanding social and regional voting lines. <\/p>\n
According to 2023 Pew research, about eight-in-ten Indian adults have a favorable view of Modi, including 55% who have a very<\/em> favorable view. Such levels of popularity for a two-term incumbent prime minister defy all modern conventions, both in India and throughout much of the democratic world. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s done something which has not happened before in Indian politics among all our prime ministers,\u201d said Naqvi. \u201cHe has willfully created a cult of his own personality.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u2018Many people think he is God\u2019<\/h2>\n
As the sun sets across the Ganges, Hindu devotees bathe in the holy river\u2019s waters and priests offer daily prayer by its banks. It\u2019s here, in the city of Varanasi \u2013 Modi\u2019s own constituency \u2013 that this so-called cult of personality is on full display. <\/p>\n
Billboards with the prime minister\u2019s face appear on the corners of roads, and saffron flags with his party\u2019s lotus symbol are hoisted on buildings across the dusty, meandering gulleys of the ancient city. <\/p>\n
On the streets, his party\u2019s volunteers go door-to-door advocating for the leader. <\/p>\n
When Modi first ran for prime minister a decade ago, he did so on a promise of infrastructure, development and anti-corruption, choosing the city of gods as his constituency \u2013 its religious symbolism the perfect backdrop for his BJP\u2019s Hindu nationalist ambitions. <\/p>\n
In one of Varanasi\u2019s oldest spice markets, shopkeepers say their lives have been transformed since. <\/p>\n
\u201cMany people think he is God,\u201d said father of two, Akash Jaiswal, pointing to Modi\u2019s welfare schemes and business incentives. \u201cWe\u2019ve never had a prime minister like Modi ever. He\u2019s done a great sacrifice for India, for us \u2026 We want him to be prime minister forever.\u201d <\/p>\n
Jaiswal even praised some of Modi\u2019s most controversial leadership moments. \u201cIndia had the least casualties during Covid,\u201d he said, when in fact the country had the third highest number of pandemic-related deaths, after the United States and Brazil, according to the World Health Organization. Modi was highly criticized for his handling of the pandemic and accused of being underprepared, as hospitals reached their limit and morgues overflowed with bodies. <\/p>\n
The city\u2019s BJP President, Dileep Patel, who has helped Modi with all three of his election campaigns, however, isn\u2019t surprised by his enduring levels of popularity. To him, Modi represents India\u2019s future. <\/p>\n
\u201cToday India is strong, capable, and self-reliant under the prime minister\u2019s leadership,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n