The Rise Of Right Wing Politics In India
Newspapers in India are plastered with one story today, the change of governments in India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh.
The elections had taken place and the results were shocking to say the least, as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had made a massive dent and had become the single largest party which got voted in. This was despite the fact that the BJP is considered a party which is right wing, and have a reputation of having a hidden agenda of "hindutva", which means they are hell bent on governance with an emphasis on religious (hindu) values.
People who follow India's politics would know that India has one of the largest populations of Muslims in the world (after Indonesia), and the secular nature of the Constitution has balanced governance with the participation of people from every religion so far. And Uttar Pradesh is one state in India which has a substantial Muslim population and has always been in the forefront of the states development, and has always been a major influence in every government in the past.
Not this time. The BJP did not even have one candidate from this community, but despite that, they have formed the government. This is the first time in the History of India that a government is being formed in a state with a large muslim population, who are not represented in any way.
I am personally shocked that such an important part of our population have been completely removed from decision making and that makes me extremely sad for the way our politics seems to be heading. The BJP, headed by the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, have been slowly making gains in the others states as well and I am fearful that if this growth goes unchecked, we may see a polarisation on religious lines which bodes ill for the nation on the long run.
I just pray good sense prevails over my countrymen so that we can show the world that we are a tolerant community who have welcomed and cherished the presence of other religious communities over thousands of years, and we cannot let petty politics ruin that for us.
For this time we have a "Yogi", a Hindu religious preacher, Yogi Adityanath, who has been sworn-in yesterday to be the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. A scene I had hoped to never see in my lifetime at least.
Some more reading:
These primitive unevolved creatures wrapped in saffron think themselves crusaders.
Are we still the largest democracy in the world? Are we still secular?