Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wins Indian elections in landslide victory

Soutik Biswas
BBC
Fri, 16 May 2014 20:32 UTC

BJP President Rajnath Singh: "This is a people's victory"

The opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has called its predicted landslide win in India's election a "people's victory".

Party president Rajnath Singh said it marked "a new era" for India.

Votes counted so far suggest the BJP is on course for the most resounding victory by any party for 30 years, trouncing the outgoing Congress Party.

After a decade of rule by Congress, the BJP is expected to steer India sharply to the right.

The new prime minister will be Narendra Modi, chief minister of the western state of Gujarat, who is seen as a no-nonsense, can-do leader who stands for development and muscular nationalism, says the BBC's Soutik Biswas.

He campaigned on promises he would revive the country's slowing economic growth. Mr Modi told cheering supporters that the result was a "new chapter" in the history of independent India.

Comment: It is indeed "new era" or "new chapter" or "turning point" , but is it for good or bad, only time will tell.

However, many Indians still have profound concerns over Mr Modi because of claims he did little to stop the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat, in which at least 1,000 people died, most of them Muslims - allegations he has always denied and over which he was never charged.

The election result will be a crushing blow to the Congress party, which is led by the Nehru-Gandhi family and has dominated Indian politics since independence.

Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi: "I respect the verdict of the people"

It reflects voter anger with Congress, which has been mired in serious corruption scandals and whose leadership has been considered ineffective in recent years, analysts say.

Accepting defeat, Congress President Sonia Gandhi said: "We humbly respect the verdict of the people."

'Turning point'

India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh earlier rang Mr Modi to congratulate him on his victory.

The 63-year-old Mr Modi celebrated with a visit to his elderly mother in Gandhinagar, the state capital of Gujarat, after tweeting: "India has won. Good times ahead."

Comment: If the BJP won, how does that make it a win for India? We can only hope Modi won't repeat the same attitude that late prime minister Indira Gandhi showed: "What is good for the Party, is good for the country". The consequences could be disastrous if this party acts with the attitude of "what is good for Hindus is good for Muslims".

Latest election results showed the BJP is on course to win 279 seats, surpassing the 272 seats needed to secure a majority in the lower house of parliament.

With their allies, the party could achieve more than 300 seats.

Narendra Modi celebrated his victory with a visit to his mother in Gujarat

Sonia and Rahul Gandhi said they took full responsibility for the Congress party's heavy defeat

There was a carnival atmosphere at the BJP's headquarters in Delhi as the result became clear

The mood was much more sombre at the Congress party headquarters

More than 500 million votes are being counted, with the official results expected later on Friday

"The people of this country have given us a great responsibility," said BJP president Rajnath Singh at a news conference.

He said the resounding victory proved the BJP had "crossed the geographical, political and social boundaries" in its appeal to voters. Meanwhile, the Congress party - which has been in power for the past decade - is leading in fewer than 50 seats.

Comment: For the toothless common man, all the political parties are the same. At best, they make a protest vote by replacing ruling governments, if indeed an alternative is on offer. The BJP is the nationalists' response to 70-year-long rule by the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, although it is the Gandhi clan's last 10 years in power that propelled India to 3rd place in the world in terms of GDP.

Accepting defeat, the Congress Party spokesman, Shakil Ahmed, said: "We are accepting the people's verdict in all humility. "Trends of the counting are certainly not in our favour. The trends point out that the country has decided to vote against us," he was quoted by news agency AP as saying.

Even before the Congress party's announcement, there were scenes of jubilation outside the BJP's headquarters in Delhi. Firecrackers exploded and people handed out sweets.

The mood was much more sombre at the Congress party's headquarters. More than 500 million people voted in what is the world's biggest exercise in democracy. Voter turnout in the mammoth nine-phase general election was a record 66.38%, beating the previous 1984 poll record.

Comment: BJP is the only major Indian political party that came to prominence by polarizing the religious sentiments through inciting the bloodiest communal violence, thus breaking the traditional political policy of Gandhian mantra - "Non Violence" and "secularism". It came to national prominence after spearheading the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992, which instantly paralyzed the entire nation along religious lines. Mr. Narendara Modi came to national prominence by inciting and allowing the brutal massacre of thousands of Muslims in his own state, Gujarat. It's this massacre that made him to lose his diplomatic visa, effectively making him a sort of a 'terrorist':

In 2005, Modi was denied a diplomatic visa to the United States. In addition, the B-1/B-2 visa that had previously been granted to him was also revoked, under a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act which makes any foreign government official who was responsible or "directly carried out, at any time, particularly severe violations of religious freedom" ineligible for the visa. In July 2013, BJP president Rajnath Singh visited the US and gave a speech urging the US to grant Modi a visa to visit the country. In response to Singh's visit, 65 Members of the Indian parliament allegedly signed a letter to US President Barack Obama requesting that the policy of denying Modi a visa be upheld. However, the veracity of some of the signatures has been called into question, as Sitaram Yechury and purported signatories have denied ever signing such a petition. In March 2014, when asked if Washington was ready to do business with Modi, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Nisha Biswal commented that "the United States has welcomed every leader (of India)", and "a democratically elected leader of India will be a welcome partner".

A report in April 2014 in the Sunday Guardian revealed that by the end of 2012, a reversal in foreign policy towards Modi by Obama had occurred.

Though BJP was in government as a coalition partner from 1998-2004, it could only put forward a moderate, secular, non-BJP personality like Atal Bihari Vajpayee as a consensus-based prime ministerial candidate.

Absolute majority in the 2014 elections makes it possible for BJP to show their true colours. We'll see soon enough...