For Modi, who had hoped to win by stoking Hindu extremism, the results of the 2024 elections did not turn out so well. Modi relied heavily on Hindu voters, believing they would vote for him exclusively. Yet, in these elections, Hindu voters have disfigured the face of the political leader who claimed to be their deity.
From within India, voices against Modi are emerging now, voices that no one dared to speak against out of fear. Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh remarked shortly before the election results that no other person sitting in the Prime Minister’s chair had used such vile and destructive language as Modi. After ten years in office, Modi’s speeches were full of venom against Muslims.
Modi’s poisonous rhetoric any Indian voter could detest and the election results show that Indians became disgusted with Modi’s speeches and actions. If any Indian leader has played a role in challenging Modi, it is Rahul Gandhi.
For Modi, the worst blow came with the name of Ram. Modi inaugurated the Ram Temple at the site of the Babri Mosque to woo Hindu voters, but they were still not satisfied, and Modi faced defeat in Ayodhya.
Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav accused that ordinary and poor Hindu voters were angry because government land was seized from poor Hindus in Ayodhya to build the Ram Temple, to please extremists. This anger was expressed in the elections.
Akhilesh Yadav stated that the awakened Hindu saw that small shopkeepers in Ayodhya and priests of all temples were starving while prominent BJP leaders bought land cheaply and sold it to the Ram Temple Trust for millions, making huge profits. The awakened Hindus, saddened by this plunder in the name of Ram, expressed their anger.
Nobody can deny that Rahul Gandhi is the only leader who openly fought against the RSS and Prime Minister Modi. Rahul Gandhi’s popularity increased as he began raising public issues and speaking out against capitalists. The BJP also played a significant role in improving his image, as their complaint led to his disqualification from Parliament and forced him to vacate his official residence.
His disqualification from Parliament had a link to speaking against Adani, shedding light on the Modi-Adani nexus. Rahul then began uniting all opposition political parties under the name INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance). He not only formed this alliance but also gave all political parties a big heart and prioritized their leaders over Congress workers.
Besides, Congress allied with its biggest rival, the Aam Aadmi Party, demonstrating Rahul Gandhi’s magnanimity. As Rahul Gandhi’s positive image was established, he chose election issues focusing on inflation and unemployment but also raised the issue of protecting the constitution to unite Dalits, Muslims, and the poor.
From his voters, Modi had sought an anti-Muslim mandate. He instilled fear by claiming that the opposition party Congress would seize their properties and resources and distribute them among Muslims. The BJP not getting a clear majority indicates that the common Indian no longer accepts this politics of hatred.
Modi describes himself as a democratic leader, but before the elections, government agencies forcibly withdrew money from the accounts of the opposition’s largest party, Congress, and later sealed their bank accounts.
On the other hand, in addition to the arrest of the Chief Ministers of Jharkhand and Delhi; raids were conducted on several opposition leaders, and cases were registered against them, showing that Modi was panicked and bent on crushing everyone in his path.
Moreover, young people campaigned to remove this government, and the common Indian voter has surely driven the first nail into Modi’s coffin by thwarting the BJP’s plan to win 400 seats.
