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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
/
India heads to the polls in world’s biggest election
By Helen Regan, Rhea Mogul and Kunal Sehgal, CNN
Updated:
9:19 AM EDT, Fri April 19, 2024
Source: CNN
Polls opened Friday in the first and largest phase of marathon , in
which populist is widely expected to secure a rare third consecutive
term and deepen his historic transformation of the world’s most
populous nation.
About 969 million people are eligible to vote in the biggest democratic
exercise in human history, with polling taking place in seven phases
over the next six weeks. Votes will be counted on June 4.
It is considered among the most consequential votes in decades, with
Modi’s powerful right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seeking an
outright majority in the lower house of parliament, or Lok Sabha.
An emphatic win for the BJP would give the party a mandate to further
enshrine its Hindu-nationalist agenda, pulling away from India’s
secular foundation toward majoritarian rule.
Opposing the BJP juggernaut is an alliance of more than two dozen
parties, including India’s main opposition party, the Indian National
Congress, which are campaigning to reduce inequality and uphold what
they say are India’s at-risk democratic institutions.
Throughout its decade in power, the BJP has come under scrutiny from
rights groups for its increasingly strident brand of Hindu nationalist
politics and an ongoing crackdown on dissent and democratic freedoms.
Yet Modi and his party have been buoyed by levels of popularity not
seen in decades. According to 2023 , about eight-in-ten Indian adults
have a favorable view of the prime minister.
Since coming to power in 2014, Modi has overseen massive infrastructure
spending, building highways, power plants and maritime projects, as
well as subsidizing the construction of millions of concrete homes for
improvised families.
“The BJP has developed the country significantly in the past ten
years. Corruption and crime has decreased drastically. What more can we
ask for?” Aditya Garg, 29, told CNN from a voting station in
Muzaffarnagar, in Uttar Pradesh.
Under Modi’s leadership, the country of 1.4 billion people has
become the major economy and a modern global power.
Despite these successes, soaring youth unemployment and inequality
remain stubbornly persistent problems, particularly in rural areas, and
critics say Modi has driven religious polarization, which has included
rising Islamophobia and persecution of the country’s 230 million
Muslims.
Modi has walked a fine line geopolitically, placing India as a crucial
counterpoint between global powers, and the Unites States, Russia and
China will be watching the election closely.
As polls opened Friday, the leader had a message for voters.
“I urge all those voting in these seats to exercise their franchise
in record numbers,” he wrote on X.
What is Modi promising?
Modi has set an ambitious target to secure a 400-seat supermajority,
with 370 directly controlled by his BJP – up from 303 in 2019 – and
the others from its National Democratic Alliance.
The BJP’s campaign manifesto centers on job creation and anti-poverty
and development programs, with particular focus on women, the poor,
young people and farmers.
Modi wants to turn India into a global manufacturing hub, continue its
massive infrastructure transformation, and achieve energy independence
by 2047.
Worth $3.7 trillion in 2023, India is the world’s fifth largest
economy, having jumped four spots in the rankings during his decade in
office. Modi has pledged that India will have the world’s third
largest economy during a possible third term.
However, economic successes have been slow to trickle down to the
country’s poorest and India’s gross domestic product (GDP) per
person is ranked a lowly 147 in 2022, according to the World Bank.
“Everything has become so expensive; how can poor people survive in
this climate? I think it’s time for a change,” said Irafan
Mohammad, a Muzaffarnagar rickshaw driver, who has four children and
earns $6 a day.
Modi wants India to become a permanent member of the United Nations
Security Council, will push to bid for the 2036 Summer Olympics and
aims to land an astronaut on the moon, and has pledged to transform the
country into a developed nation by 2047.
Who are Modi’s opponents?
Challenging him is the country’s main opposition, the Indian National
Congress, a party instrumental ending nearly 200 years of British
colonial rule and one that has governed for much of its independent
history.
But over the last decade, it has struggled to find relevance, unable to
break through the popularity of India’s incumbent leader.
Rahul Gandhi, the son of the famed Gandhi dynasty is the face of the
party. He lost the past two elections to Modi and will be contending
once again from the southern state of Kerala.
In a bid to unseat Modi, the Congress last year joined hands with a
number of regional parties to form the Indian National Developmental
Inclusive Alliance, known as INDIA. But that alliance has started to
see cracks emerge with a number of detractions to the BJP.
It has also yet to put forward a candidate for prime minister.
Opposition leaders and parties have faced a slew of legal and financial
challenges in the run-up to this year’s election, with many accusing
the BJP of using state agencies to stifle and attack its opponents.
The arrest last month of the popular Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind
Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi and a staunch Modi critic sparked
protests in the capital and prompted claims of a political
“conspiracy” by his party.
Modi and the BJP have denied political interference, with one it was a
“process of law” to take “appropriate action against
corruption.”
However, Congress’ manifesto has been dubbed one of India’s most
progressive, pledging “freedom from fear” and vowing to protect
freedom of speech, expression and religious belief espoused in the
constitution.
Who is voting?
Voters are casting their ballots for 543 seats in the lower house of
parliament, or Lok Sabha, with a further two seats nominated by the
country’s president.
The party with the majority will form a government and appoint one of
its winning candidates as prime minister.
On Friday, voters from constituencies in 21 states and union
territories across India electronically cast their ballots. Some
states are so big that voting is spread out over the seven phases,
while others vote on one day.
Among the most politically important states is Uttar Pradesh, home to
240 million people who vote in all seven phases. India’s largest
state is a crucial battleground with 80 seats in the Lok Sabha up for
grabs.
Home to the iconic Taj Mahal and India’s holiest city, Modi’s
constituency of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh is also one of the country’s
poorest. And while some 38 million Muslims call Uttar Pradesh home, it
is considered the BJP’s Hindu heartland and growing increasingly
divided along lines of class, caste and religion.
Aqdas Siddiqui, 26, is a businessman voting in Uttar Pradesh’s
Muzaffarnagar. He says though he’s a Muslim, he’ll vote for the
BJP.
“They’ve brought in a lot of welfare schemes for the poor and
Muslims are the biggest beneficiary. The government has also cut red
tape and the country has become more business-friendly,” he said.
However, many Muslims CNN spoke to said that they can longer accept
being marginalized by the current government and voted for the
opposition.
“A country is like a family, it can only develop if the head of the
family treats everyone equally and doesn’t discriminate,” said
Mehtab Ali, 54.
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