2024 Indian general elections: Ten years of PM Modi brings Hindu nationalism to the mainstream

AHMEDABAD, India (AP) — hindu nationalismwas once a fringe ideology in india, has now become mainstream.No one has done more to advance this cause than the Prime Minister. narendra modione of India’s most beloved and polarizing political leaders.

And no organization has had more influence on his political philosophy and ambitions than the paramilitary right-wing group known as the RSS, founded nearly a century ago.

Ambalal Koshti, 76, who first welcomed Modi to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s political wing in his home state of Gujarat in the late 1960s, said: “I never imagined he would come to power this way.” I didn’t even do it,” he said.

Mr. Modi was a teenager. Like other young men and even boys who participated, he learned to march in formation, fight, meditate, and defend the Hindu homeland.

Decades ago, when Mahatma Gandhi was preaching the unity of Hinduism and Islam, the RSS claimed: change india If necessary, it will be forcibly incorporated into the Hindu state. (A former RSS official said he fired his three bullets into Gandhi’s chest in 1948, killing Gandhi a few months after India gained independence.)

Experts say the spiritual and political education he received from the RSS has been a driving force in everything Modi has done as prime minister over the past decade, a period that has helped India rise to the top of the world. ing. global power and the world The fifth largest economic power.

At the same time, his rule also saw brazen attacks, especially against minorities. Muslim — from hate speech to lynching. democracy in indiacritics say, press, political enemy And courts face growing threats. And Prime Minister Modi has increasingly blurred the line between religion and state.

Mr. Modi, 73, is campaigning for a third term. election, starts Friday. He and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party are expected to win. Although he faces a wide range of challenges, divided alliance About regional political parties.

Supporters and critics agree on one thing. Prime Minister Modi has gained staying power by making Hindu nationalism acceptable, even desirable, to a nation of 1.4 billion people who have prided themselves on pluralism and secularism for decades. is. As a result, a large number of votes will be collected. He is 80% Hindu.

“He is 100% a product of RSS ideology. He achieved their goals,” said Niranjan Mukhopadhyay, who wrote a biography of Prime Minister Modi.

unity of hindus

A few weeks ago, in between deep breaths under the night sky in western India, a group of boys chanted RSS prayers in Sanskrit. Please save our religion. ”

More than 65 years ago, Mr. Modi was one of them. Born in 1950 into a lower-caste family, he was first exposed to the RSS through the shakhas (local squads) that used a combination of religious education, self-defense techniques and games to recruit boys.

By the 1970s, Mr. Modi had become a full-time campaigner, touring neighborhoods on bicycle to rally support for the RSS.

“Back then, Hindus were afraid to unite,” Koshti said. “We were trying to bring them together.”

The RSS was formed in 1925 with the aim of strengthening the Hindu community, but it was not mainstream. He was linked to Gandhi’s assassination and accused of inciting hatred against Muslims, amid periodic riots in India.

For this group, Indian civilization is inseparable from Hinduism, but critics argue that Indian philosophy is rooted in Hindu supremacy.

Today, the RSS has spawned a network of affiliated groups, from student unions and farmers’ unions to nonprofit organizations and vigilante groups often accused of violence. Their power and legitimacy ultimately comes from his BJP, which emerged from the RSS.

“Until Prime Minister Modi took office, the Bharatiya Janata Party had never won a majority in India’s parliament on its own,” said Christophe Jaffrelot, an expert on Prime Minister Modi and the Hindu right. “For the RSS, this is unprecedented.”

expand his politics

Mr. Modi made his first major political break in 2001 when he became the chief minister of his home state of Gujarat. Months later, anti-Muslim riots swept through the region, killing at least 1,000 people.

There were also suspicions that Prime Minister Modi was quietly supporting the riots. denied the charges India’s Supreme Court then pardoned him due to lack of evidence.

Far from destroying his political career, the riots boosted it.

Mr. Jaffrelot said Mr. Modi exploited religious tensions for political gain and further strengthened Hindu nationalism. With the riots tarnishing Gujarat’s reputation, he turned to big business to build factories, create jobs and spur development.

“This created a political economy. He had close relationships with the capitalists, and they supported him,” Giaffrulo said.

Jafrullo said Modi has become increasingly authoritarian, increasing his powers over police and courts and bypassing the media to connect directly with voters.

The “Gujarat model”, a term coined by Mr. Modi, was a harbinger of what he would do as prime minister.

“He gave Hindu nationalism a flavor of populism,” Jahrlot said. “Mr. Modi invented it in Gujarat and now he has spread it across the country.”

big plans

In June, Prime Minister Modi not only sought to win a third term, but also set a goal of winning two-thirds of the votes. And he’s touting big plans.

“I am working every moment to make India a developed country by 2047,” Prime Minister Modi said at a rally. He also wants to eradicate poverty and make the economy the third largest in the world.

If Modi wins, he will become the second Indian leader after Jawaharlal Nehru to stay in power for a third term.

With an approval rating of over 70%, Mr. Modi’s popularity exceeded that of his own party. Supporters see him as a strongman leader unafraid to take on India’s enemies, from Pakistan to liberal elites. His supporters are the wealthy, whose wealth has soared under him. For the poor, numerous free programs ranging from food to housing help them avoid the pain of high unemployment and inflation. Western leaders and businesses are lining up to court him, turning to India as a counterweight to China.

He has built a reputation for being meticulous. With all due respect to his Hinduism, he said: practice yoga In front of television crews and the United Nations, he extols the virtues of vegetarianism and preaches the restoration of India’s glory. He refers to himself in the third person.

PK Laheri, a former senior bureaucrat in Gujarat, said Mr Modi was “not taking any risks” in terms of winning and was going into the election thinking his party would not lose a single seat. Ta.

Analysts say the common thread in Mr. Modi’s rise is that his most important policy is the RSS’s ambitions.

In 2019, his government stripped him of his special status. kashmir conflict, the only Muslim-majority region in the country. his government is citizenship law Excludes Muslim immigrants. In January, Prime Minister Modi responded to a long-standing demand from the RSS and millions of Hindus during his opening speech. temple The ruins of a destroyed mosque.

The BJP denies enacting discriminatory policies and says its work benefits all Indians.

The BJP announced last week that it would pass the bill. general legal code Another RSS wish for all Indians is to replace religious personal laws. Islamic leaders oppose this.

But Prime Minister Modi’s politics appeal to far more than right-wing nationalists, and the issues resonate deeply with ordinary Hindus. In a departure from previous years, Mr. Modi paints a Hindu image of a rising India.

School principal Satish Afrani said he would vote for Mr. Modi. Mr. Ahlani said that today Gujarat is as prosperous as India.

“Where our name didn’t reach, it’s there now,” he said. “Being Hindu is our identity. That’s why we want a Hindu country. … For the development of this country, Muslims must be with us. They should accept this and follow.”

___

Sarik reported from New Delhi.