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Editorial: BJP’s Loss in Karnataka

The Congress Party’s victory is unlikely to herald any major change for the political fortunes of Narendra Modi

by Editorial

File photo. Prakash Singh—AFP

India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has suffered its first significant defeat in a by-election for the southern state of Karnataka, making observers think—rather wishfully—that it spells the beginning of the end of a government that encourages religious fundamentalism in an ostensibly secular nation. Will the Congress Party, who won Karnataka with an overwhelming majority, secure more victories in future, enabling them to form a government at the center and give relief to suffering religious minorities?

The Hindutva-backed BJP’s “religious” war against non-Hindu nationals defies India’s secular Constitution, granting seeming impunity to mobs targeting non-Hindus, especially Muslims. In 2020, the BJP weaponized the COVID-19 pandemic, targeting the Tablighi Jamaat conference that was to host 9,000 attendees after accusing congregants of “intentionally” spreading the disease. Curiously, no similar concerns were voiced over events at some of the country’s largest Hindu temples, which were at the same time welcoming tens of thousands of devotees. The organizers and participants of the Tablighi Jamaat were charged with criminal acts for hosting the event, with many arrested and some still awaiting trial. The government, in 2019, also passed the prejudiced Citizenship Amendment Act, offering an expedited path to citizenship for people of all faiths from Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Pakistan—except Muslims.

In recent months, the country’s Christian community has also come under attack. There are now growing fears that the Sikh community, whose faith conflicts with Hindutva, could be next. But there is little to indicate the polls in Karnataka herald any turning of the tide. A recent poll found that Narendra Modi remains the top choice of prime minister for a majority of the voting public, even though Congress’ Rahul Gandhi has made some inroads. It’s a sad fall from grace for a country where even secular Hindu leaders used to believe Hinduism was generally more tolerant than monotheistic religions; today, they are equally under siege by Hindutva mobs, as the beleaguered Muslim and Christian minorities.

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