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India's pro-business Modi storms to historic election win

154 points by tokenadult 12y ago

kshatrea 12y ago
All day I've been wondering when this or something like this would make it to HN. There's going to be polarization now - left wing or "secular" (believe me that is an overused term here in India) and so called liberals versus an opinionated group of people who believe in the Modi form of government and leadership. Not only is this not a good topic for HN - it is about as bad as saying "Pro big-government Obama wins" or "Right wing Conservatives take Britain by storm!" or "Abbott defeats the Labour Party!" or "Merkel gains at the expense of leftists!" or any other such article. Bottom line is: you can not be sure of what Modi or any other politician for that matter will do until he/she does it. Until today, we didn't even know he'd get such a landslide. As for the technological impact of Modi's win - he loves solar & infrastructure(so go long solar & infra stocks) and it is probable that the internet penetration in India will increase - although whether that is credited to him/his party or not is a matter of debate. This entire election is about a nationalist Indian party that has defeated a clutch of leftist parties (similar to other nationalist movements in many other nations) and there isn't a leftist versus nationalist debate in the world that deserves attention on HN. For the record, I supported Modi's party in this election, so I maybe biased. Take with a pinch of salt. EDIT: removed my comment about this not required on HN as in hindsight it seemed unimportant to me.
- tomp 12y ago
  > Please flag this off the front page - there are other more deserving stories. I should learn not to upvote comments before I read them to the end. Oh well... Anyhow, this election result isn't fascinating to me because he is or isn't right-wing/nationalistic/pro-business/whatever, it's interesting because it represents a very strong change of direction in the government. It looks like people were very dissatisfied with the ruling party/coalition, which is similar to what has been happening in some EU countries after the crisis (Hungary, Slovenia, Greece, ... - in some of these countries, like apparently in India, it was the Nationalist parties that gained most). To pull this off in a country with a billion people is even more fascinating. But at least democracy is working in the East, if not in the West (e.g. US).
  - kshatrea 12y ago
    An analysis of news reports suggests that you're mostly right, but there is a huge factor of the personal charisma of this man. Like Obama, he has played on the "hope & change" motto. Can he deliver, we will have to see. You may downvote if you like, but I still do not see why this should be on the front page of HN!
    - davidw 12y ago
      kshatrea is correct: politics and mainstream news are generally off topic.
  - twoodfin 12y ago
    But at least democracy is working in the East, if not in the West (e.g. US). This is a little snarky and off-hand for HN. There are threads seemingly daily to discuss how and why the fraction of the electorate represented by HN commenters is not getting its preferred policy outcomes. There's no need to pull threads on other topics into that morass.
    - tomp 12y ago
      I mentioned the US because it has only 2 political parties, which have quite similar political programs and even more similar (in the course of my lifetime) governing styles. It's not much different in Slovenia; same politicians for the past 25 years, with little change possible.
- nkoren 12y ago
  I've worked on many urban planning and transport infrastructure projects in India, since 2001, and have seen first-hand how the Congress government have sent the country into a mire in recent years (after what I regarded as a very promising start). Even when they were not actually corrupt, their decision-making processes became so poor that it was impossible to get anything done. I do have high hopes that Modi will change that. At the same time, nationalism is dangerous in any form. I remember the last BJP government -- I was living in Ahmedabad in the run-up to the riots, and got out a few days beforehand, as it was increasingly clear that Something Bad was about to go down -- and I remember the way that Vajpayee would beat the war drums with Pakistan whenever anything he needed to divert attention from something on the home front. Hopefully Modi has learned that fanning the flames of communal and international tension is not, in fact, to India's benefit. If Modi can stay focused on cleaning up the government, building infrastructure, and generally making the country a less difficult place to get things done, then India can resume its trajectory towards becoming one of the world's great powers. If, on the other hand, he goes for the cheaper and easier political points that one can score by slagging off Muslims, then I fear that India will tear itself apart, leading to far worse outcomes than Congress could have achieved. On balance, I'm optimistic that he will steer towards the former more than the latter, but I'll be watching carefully.
- danmaz74 12y ago
  Our of curiosity, what do you think about the events in Gujarat in 2002?
  - kshatrea 12y ago
    It is deplorable and a very tragic set of events. I wasn't there, so I had to depend on the media for my consumption of news. The Supreme Court of India has declared Narendra Modi as legally not guilty of any crimes. From the news it certainly seems the Court has erred, although it is a constitutional body and as a citizen I need to abide by its judgement. There are of course Indian citizens who charge that the media is bought and paid for, just like other countries. If you're asking why I voted for the BJP, in my city the local BJP leader is very good and the other party leaders are very corrupt.
    - monsterix 12y ago
      > The Supreme Court of India has declared Narendra Modi as legally not guilty of any crimes. This is not true. SC has said in 'absence of sufficient proof' and such. Please do your homework.
      - Aradalf 12y ago
        And thus not guilty....
    - danmaz74 12y ago
      I understand, thanks for the answer.
  - discardorama 12y ago
    The sad reality is: there are riots in India with depressing frequency. The riots in Gujarat were not an aberration; such things happen all over the place. That doesn't answer your question; but I'm laying the groundwork. The Congress Party (which has been ruling India for the vast majority of the time since India became independent) realized, early on, that Modi was a threat and to counter this threat, they made every attempt to tar him with the guilt of 2002. No other Chief Minister of any other state has ever been held to such standards. Bear in mind: this is the same Congress Party whose members went on a rampage in 1984, killing/burning 4000+ Sikhs in Delhi when Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her bodyguards. They even came out and said, basically, "meh, bad things happen". The large number of Sikh deaths was _directly_ a result of their deliberate inaction. I know; I was in Delhi at that time. The Army was not called out for days, just so the bloodletting could continue. For this party to turn around and accuse Modi of orchestrating the 2002 riots is a sick joke.
Osmium 12y ago
I found this article very informative for an outsider: http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21600106-he-will-probably-become-indias-next-prime-minister-does-not-mean-he-should-be-can-anyone http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21600106-he-will-proba... I'm not advocating the conclusions or opinions in the article (I simply don't know enough, and I know this article was controversial too), but it's an interesting read.
- amjd 12y ago
  It's behind a paywall. :/
  - tomp 12y ago
    Use incognito/anonymous browsing mode.
    - amjd 12y ago
      Thanks, that worked. :)
  - danmaz74 12y ago
    Are you using Chrome? Ctrl+shift+n and you can read it :)
tokenadult 12y ago
Submitted in part because a Hacker News participant recently berated Americans on Hacker News for not being more aware of the election in India. (The person who wrote that comment is an American of Indian heritage, I'm pretty sure.) I was drawn to this article from the Google News news aggregator because it was listed as one of the "in-depth" articles. I was also startled by the title because until now I haven't heard most news reports as I have been following the election in India describing Modi as "pro-business." That's an issue I have no opinion about. I will note for the record that I think a democratic election in a LARGE, multilingual country is an interesting process of human society. Participants here who dream of building startup businesses with truly worldwide reach will want to know how economic development is proceeding in the world's second-most-populous country. (Based on likely trends, India will eventually become the world's most populous country in my lifetime.) I think a free press and contested elections give India a lot of advantages over other countries and can serve as an example to China and other large countries still developing to higher living standards. AFTER EDIT: Now that this is a breaking news story, I'll list a few other English-language reports on the election results here as I gather them from my usual news aggregator. "Modi Brings India's Opposition Into Power at Last. Now What?" (BloombergBusinessweek) http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-05-16/modi-brings-indias-opposition-into-power-at-last-dot-now-what http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-05-16/modi-brings-... "Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi claims victory as India's next prime minister" (CNN) http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/16/world/asia/india-election-result/ http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/16/world/asia/india-election-... "There are no enemies in democratic politics: Modi" (The Hindu, a newspaper from India) http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/there-are-no-enemies-in-politics-and-democracy-modi/article6016990.ece http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/there-are-no-enemies-i... As before, I am not a voter in India, so I don't have a particular opinion about the voters' choice in the most recent national election in India.
- kshatrea 12y ago
  Thanks for the clarification - you've very politely reduced my objections to dust.
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
cmadan 12y ago
Here's a short summary to help others who haven't heard much about him. Short background - Has been the Chief Minister (equivalent to Governer) of the Western Indian state of Gujarat for 14 years now. The Good --- * Achieved a very high GDP growth rate for Gujarat * Made Gujarat a preferred destination for big industrialists to set up their factories since he gives land & clearances very readily. * Developed infrastructure in Gujarat - built roads, highways, flyovers. * Known to rule with an iron fist - a "my way or the highway" style of politician. The Bad --- * Accused of not practising all inclusive development. Critics point to poor performance of metrics such as child mortality rates, education, Human Development Index (HDI) etc. * Many believe that he did not do enough to stop the Gujarat riots in 2001 where 1000 people were killed. After this incident, the governments of US and UK denied Modi a visa to enter their countries * Describes himself as a "Hindu nationalist", has a history of making communally charged statements although seems to have cleaned up in recent years focusing on development. The Ugly --- * Believes homosexuality is unnatural and is against repealing an 100+ year old law which makes gay sex a criminal offence. * Formed political alliances with leaders such as Yeddyurappa who has many cases of corruption pending and parties such as Shiv Sena who are notorious for using violence to target ethnic groups.
- breitling 12y ago
  From what I've read about this guy, there seems to be a lot more to add to the "ugly" column. - He equates the plight of muslims murdered in 2002 to a puppy run over by a car [1]. - He has been a life long member of party's most militant wing [2]. - He's not shy about delivering flagrant speeches. Seems to be a very divisive figure. If I were one of the minorities in India, this would be a very disappointing day. [1] http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/07/12/narendra-modi-puppy-reuters-interview-idINDEE96B08S20130712 http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/07/12/narendra-modi-puppy... [2] http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2014/05/14/why_indians_should_fear_a_bjp_election_win_siddiqui.html http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2014/05/14/why_ind...
  - yepyepyep 12y ago
    I no longer live in India but have a large extended family that does. Being in the minority, they are filled with paranoia about what this could mean. I'm still skeptical if anything bad will happen but I am also not living there.
higherpurpose 12y ago
What are his opinions on mass surveillance in India, which seems to have become about as aggressive as it is in US and UK in the past few years, or has that issue not even been raised? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A91idibgT0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A91idibgT0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwCixZk0snM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwCixZk0snM
- unmole 12y ago
  His party is all for 'stronger anti-terrorism' laws. I wouldn't be surprised if they pushed through a more Orwellian version of POTA[0] [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevention_of_Terrorism_Act,_2002 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevention_of_Terrorism_Act,_20...
eshvk 12y ago
When I last used to be interested in Indian politics ( around 10 years ago). The man was supposed to be a local extreme right wing politician with genocidal tendencies. I am rather surprised that "pro-business" was the tagline the HN post finally went with. Has the man changed since?
- ecthiender 12y ago
  Ha ha! Good observation.
joosters 12y ago
Note that 'pro-business' is a politically empty phrase. After all, no candidate in any election would claim to be 'anti-business'. If the opposite to any given political standpoint is completely unacceptable, then IMO that makes the original viewpoint empty and meaningless.
- icebraining 12y ago
  "No candidate" is too strong a word; around here we have a few that are certainly anti-business. (EDIT: Note that I'm not an US citizen, and this is not a jab at anyone, it's a statement of fact. I can assure you that the candidate of the Reorganized Movement of the Party of the Proletariat is indeed anti-business)
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
  - icebraining 12y ago
    Another alternative is how Luis Zingales puts it: "Pro-market, not necessarily pro-business". Though to some this might be a distinction without a difference, I prefer this viewpoint.
- Brakenshire 12y ago
  > Note that 'pro-business' is a politically empty phrase. After all, no candidate in any election would claim to be 'anti-business'. Not sure I agree, for instance no candidate would claim to be 'anti-life', but that doesn't make 'pro-life' a politically empty phrase. In that case, you know exactly what someone means by it. But pro-business is definitely vague. It might just as well mean 'friendly with industrialists' as wanting to spark wide-based growth.
  - joosters 12y ago
    True, a good counterexample! I think in general it is a good rule of thumb to evaluate political statements by. There are elections coming up near me soon and several candidates like to claim that they will 'support the local community'. Strangely no-one is against that!
intull 12y ago
It might also be worth mentioning the numbers here. The BJP, party to which Mr. Narendra Modi belongs to, alone has got more than 50% of the seats in the Indian Parliament and nearly 60% with allies. The INC (Indian National Congress) has suffered a historic defeat with not even 10% of the seats. Which also brings the interesting fact that the NDA will not have a Leader of Opposition as none of the other parties hold more than 10% of the seats.
- datacog 12y ago
  > Which also brings the interesting fact that the NDA will not have a Leader of Opposition That is not true. INC can form alliances to claim opposition. The sad part is, they still want Rahul Gandhi to lead it. http://www.fakingnews.firstpost.com/2014/05/congress-looking-for-allies-to-form-an-opposition-in-lok-sabha/ http://www.fakingnews.firstpost.com/2014/05/congress-looking...
  - amjd 12y ago
    In case you didn't notice, the article you linked is from Faking News, India's version of The Onion.
geekam 12y ago
With his deep ties with big business families I doubt this "pro-business" is anything but pro corps. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/meghabahree/2014/03/12/doing-big-business-in-modis-gujarat/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/meghabahree/2014/03/12/doing-big...)
pessimizer 12y ago
Pro-business is a really narrow way of describing Modi's ideology. Here's a disturbingly comprehensive post that paints a more complete picture: Narendra Modi and the rise of India’s neo-fascist Far-Right: The facts http://www.loonwatch.com/2014/04/narendra-modi-and-the-rise-of-indias-neo-fascist-far-right-the-facts/ http://www.loonwatch.com/2014/04/narendra-modi-and-the-rise-...
cstross 12y ago
Calling Modi "pro-business" seems like a bit of an over-simplication. He's a member of the RSS ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashtriya_Swayamsevak_Sangh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashtriya_Swayamsevak_Sangh ), which is arguably a violently anti-muslim paramilitary group, as well as leading the BJP (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharatiya_Janata_Party https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharatiya_Janata_Party). It's not unreasonable to call the BJP centre-right on economic/business issues ... but they have other policies as well, some of which are rather disturbing. I'm not Indian and have no connection to the sub-continent. But it does not fill me with the warm fuzzies to read in wikipedia that: "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."
- abhidilliwal 12y ago
  I just believe in data and not articles, here is something to check. http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B&Muslim=20-40%25 http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B&Muslim=20-40%25
  - mxfh 12y ago
    What are you trying to show by this, if you don't give anything to compare it to? try: http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B or hindi: http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Hindi http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Hindi vs non-hindi http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Rest http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Rest Also can someone explain what bi-polar means in this context (best guess so far, single party majority in voting district)? It looks very distinct: http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Bi-polar=Bi-polar http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Bi-polar=Bi-polar
  - DangerousPie 12y ago
    I assume this supposed to show that his party did well in districts with large Muslim populations? I am not sure what you are trying to say with this. If you are claiming that this means that he can't be that anti-Muslim then I think that's far from the only possible explanation. For one, you are showing every district with at least 20% Muslim population. So even if every one of them had voted for the opposition, the 80% non-Muslims would have still decided the election.
kang 12y ago
A corrupt Business Model. BJP (the party under Modi's leadership) allegedly spent 100 billion Rs on advertisement. Like cunning businessman they exploited a loophole in the law; the parties are exempted from disclosing the source of their income! With this amount of money, every child in India could be educated for free. Imagine that for a second. The huge spendings, presenting a lipstick-on-a-pig development model of Gujrat[1] and bogus-voting (with many people publicly claiming to do so[2] to no brunt by the law) BJP has won these elections. The money input allegedly came from businessmen Ambani & Adani. They gained 1.5 billion dollars today itself![3] Adani has quadrupled in value over past 6 months. A very sad day for the minorities indeed. But India is so huge that even if a thousand die, people are unaffected. People have a very weak memory and any deed, howsoever bad, is easily forgotten within days. Add to that the ignorance of people to indirect influence of any event; people wont respond until they get the heat directly. I have lost hope. I feel I don't understand the majority of my nation. [1](I worked in the capital of Gujrat) [2]http://indianexponent.com/scrapbook/he-bragged-he-voted-18-times-for-bjp-and-this-is-how-its-done-in-muzaffarnagar/ http://indianexponent.com/scrapbook/he-bragged-he-voted-18-t... [3] http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-16/india-s-ambani-adani-gain-1-5-billion-in-a-day-on-modi-victory.html http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-16/india-s-ambani-adan...
- abhigupta 12y ago
  To put it another way, Majority of Indians don't understand or your share your beliefs either. Simply put, Modi won because Indian people believed he represents a better alternative to anyone out there by wide margin. I find it hard to put much credibility in the above ideas, when it is implied that somehow stock market going up and Ambani and Adani companies increasing their Market Cap is caused by them potentially donating money to an opposition candidate in an election and caused for concern!
- chaofguan 12y ago
  Mods , please take this post. This is blatant hatred.
  - kefka 12y ago
    Just because you do not agree does not make it hatred.
linux_devil 12y ago
Correction : Certainly not historic , when you say historic would like to correct you that in 1984 , INC (2014 runner-up party) won 414 seats . One of the party which was crowdsourced "AAP" won only 4 seats but certainly show a ray of hope when leadership has been tossed between both these parties since Independence .
monsterix 12y ago
I usually do not write comments on politicians, but being an Indian I feel sad that someone like Narendra Modi has even been considered for the post of Prime Minister by my countrymen. Let alone the decision to elect him for the top job. But so it is, he is now the PM, and I accept what democracy and fate has asked me to accept and go with. Having said that I am yet to understand why the following murders by the Godman himself have remain unsolved so far: To inform and remind people there are quite a few murders that have been carried out by Modi, Amit Shah and D. G. Vanzara: 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haren_Pandya http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haren_Pandya This guy was the Home Minister of Gujarat and key witness to implicate Modi to confess former's role in execution of 3000 children and women in Godhra Kand. 2. http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/kausar-bi-wa.. http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/kausar-bi-wa... Wife of the hitman used to kill 1 above. 3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Soharbuddin_.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Soharbuddin_... The hitman. 4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishrat_Jahan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishrat_Jahan Unsolved. 5. The guy with direct reporting to Amit Shah and Narendra Modi: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D.G._Vanzara http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D.G._Vanzara The hitman with a uniform. 6. and there are several hundred other cases which could and could not surface above Modi's close quarters. Here is a video of a few criminals who proudly discuss how they went on killing entire families of a particular faith, and how Modi gave them the strength, protection and instruction to do so: 7. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFZBNUnG5pI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFZBNUnG5pI I am actually reassessing the value in the concept of democracy lately. I think tyrannies almost always figure out a way to come on the top. It's like seeded alongside the Third Law of Thermodynamics.
- cscurmudgeon 12y ago
  Let us apply a non zero amount of critical thinking and logic. > Narendra Modi and his team of murderers You either have evidence for that statement or you don't. 1. If it is the first, go to the courts, else you will be deemed complicit in the murders. 2. If it is the latter, you are not telling the truth. Which one is it?
  - monsterix 12y ago
    You mean go to a Modi controlled court and ask milord Modi "where should I seek justice against the crimes you have been doing?" I am sure you are smarter than this.
darwinGod 12y ago
To those very new to India's politics, there are few things to consider before forming an opinion of Modi's involvement in the 2002 riots. (a) The Government in power at the center was the opposition party ( Congress) throughout the last decade. (2004-214). If they had the power to twist Supreme court's arm (appointment of judges etc), they would have most certainly done that, and influenced the outcome. (b) The Government at the Center (2004-2014) has had at its disposal the main investigative body of the country (CBI) to do any arm-twisting against Modi. (c)Despite this, and despite intense media scrutiny in India, if the Supreme Court- the highest court in India- has given Modi a clean chit on his involvement in the riots, then sufficient respect has to accorded to the same. It is significantly way,way,WAY more authoritative than any wannabe-investigative journalists airing their opinions non-stop on television or highly-viewed blog articles. Let that sink in. If a thousand well-indexed news articles/ well followed blogs paint a different picture, that does not change facts. The Supreme court of India has been known to be strong and independent,even openly rebuking the Center for it's stupidity and corruption ( Search for 2G-Spectrum scam). True we have a lot of corruption everywhere,but the arm-chair dismissal of Indian Supreme Court's weightage- by Indians ourselves- against top 10 google search results - pains me. If Indians ourselves cant do that, how can we expect the global audience to form an informed opinion?
anuraj 12y ago
Remains to be seen whether this will usher in economic revival or the country drifts to religious strife - Modi has potential for both.
harmonicon 12y ago
While economic development are very important, I hope Mr. Modi will not bend over backward for business interests just to return the favor. Excessive corporate tax cuts and environmental damage all set back the lives of the "lay people".
sgaunt 12y ago
The greatest trick Modi pulled is not convincing people that he is not responsible for the 2002 pogrom. Lots of people believe that he is directly or indirectly responsible. But somehow he convinced people that it doesn't matter. Also 10 years of corrupt, incompetent congress goverment made people desperate for change. This reminds me of The Dark Knight quote "You crossed the line first, sir. You hammered them and in their desperation they turned to a man they didn't fully understand". The election battle looked like Kerry vs Bush. Rahul Gandhi looked so weak and incompetent to lead a country whereas Modi projected himself strong(with 52 inch chest!). His PR machinery was so effective that, BJB couldn't have produced the same result with some other leader. My guess is even Modi/BJB was replaced in 5 years, the fallout of this government will stay longer.
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
not_that_noob 12y ago
I find the Internet supporters of Modi/RSS/BJP a fascinating tribe. They are usually well-educated intelligent Indians, but with a marked tendency to turn off their critical-thinking faculties when the latter is mentioned. In addition, they expend enormous amounts of energy on the Internets trying in futility to paper over the obvious, and play the 'it's-all-a-aniti-hindu-conspiracy-card'. Hence the down votes for rather straightforward factual comments below.
- not_that_noob 12y ago
  Your down vote confirms my statement above. Hiding the truth doesn't make it untrue.
- yepyepyep 12y ago
  It just tells you that we all have serious blindspots. These super smart people, if they took a step back one day to review their logic, they would probably be very embarrassed.
WasimBhai 12y ago
After 60 years, just as Pakistan is unraveling with religious extremism that has permeated the fabric of society, India elects Modi, someone who has been a life long member of RSS, a fascist Hindu organization, and have often been accused of being complicit in Gujarat pogroms of 2002. An India, which was founded upon the principles of egalitarianism, a Pakistan which was to be a homeland for minorities. 60 years, and both of those principles falling to pieces in each of the states.
ayushgta 12y ago
"Commentators have sought to explain Modi to non-Indians, deploying numerous comparisons to do so; but the one that works best, in my opinion, is to see him as a kind of Indian (or Hindu) Ariel Sharon." http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/05/16/modi-crushes-gandhi-in-india-s-election-landslide.html http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/05/16/modi-crushe...
pagade 12y ago
Time magazine article - http://time.com/102768/narendra-modi-boy-from-the-backyard/ http://time.com/102768/narendra-modi-boy-from-the-backyard/
chaofguan 12y ago
Entire tone of comments is filled with hatred. Downvote as hell as you want. I think most comments are by shills or ignorant , narcissist US people who pretend to be intelligent and always believe what is in media rather than seeking the truth.
tn13 12y ago
A lot of people have turned into sulking mode and are claiming that Mr. Modi is some kind of draconian third world dictator who is now going to kill many people in India. Even though it may appear to ordinary westerners please be assured that this is far far away from the truth.
known 12y ago
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste_politics_in_India https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste_politics_in_India
maheshs 12y ago
People who claim Modi ia a pro development are ill informed. If Gujarat is a "model" than at least 5-6 states are in India which you can call "super model". Link contains state ranking on various Index (Right Navigation). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Indian_states_and_territories_by_Human_Development_Index http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Indian_states_and_terri... People of Gujarat were always pro business and evidence for the same is, people of Since independence, people of Gujarat are least dependent upon government jobs and having low un-employment rate always. Now why Modi was elected. Reason is same the way congress was winning in last 50 years. Media, Propaganda, Mix politics with religion and wrap all those into "Hope".

154 points by tokenadult 12y ago

All day I've been wondering when this or something like this would make it to HN. There's going to be polarization now - left wing or "secular" (believe me that is an overused term here in India) and so called liberals versus an opinionated group of people who believe in the Modi form of government and leadership. Not only is this not a good topic for HN - it is about as bad as saying "Pro big-government Obama wins" or "Right wing Conservatives take Britain by storm!" or "Abbott defeats the Labour Party!" or "Merkel gains at the expense of leftists!" or any other such article. Bottom line is: you can not be sure of what Modi or any other politician for that matter will do until he/she does it. Until today, we didn't even know he'd get such a landslide. As for the technological impact of Modi's win - he loves solar & infrastructure(so go long solar & infra stocks) and it is probable that the internet penetration in India will increase - although whether that is credited to him/his party or not is a matter of debate. This entire election is about a nationalist Indian party that has defeated a clutch of leftist parties (similar to other nationalist movements in many other nations) and there isn't a leftist versus nationalist debate in the world that deserves attention on HN. For the record, I supported Modi's party in this election, so I maybe biased. Take with a pinch of salt. EDIT: removed my comment about this not required on HN as in hindsight it seemed unimportant to me.

tomp 12y ago
> Please flag this off the front page - there are other more deserving stories. I should learn not to upvote comments before I read them to the end. Oh well... Anyhow, this election result isn't fascinating to me because he is or isn't right-wing/nationalistic/pro-business/whatever, it's interesting because it represents a very strong change of direction in the government. It looks like people were very dissatisfied with the ruling party/coalition, which is similar to what has been happening in some EU countries after the crisis (Hungary, Slovenia, Greece, ... - in some of these countries, like apparently in India, it was the Nationalist parties that gained most). To pull this off in a country with a billion people is even more fascinating. But at least democracy is working in the East, if not in the West (e.g. US).
- kshatrea 12y ago
  An analysis of news reports suggests that you're mostly right, but there is a huge factor of the personal charisma of this man. Like Obama, he has played on the "hope & change" motto. Can he deliver, we will have to see. You may downvote if you like, but I still do not see why this should be on the front page of HN!
  - davidw 12y ago
    kshatrea is correct: politics and mainstream news are generally off topic.
- twoodfin 12y ago
  But at least democracy is working in the East, if not in the West (e.g. US). This is a little snarky and off-hand for HN. There are threads seemingly daily to discuss how and why the fraction of the electorate represented by HN commenters is not getting its preferred policy outcomes. There's no need to pull threads on other topics into that morass.
  - tomp 12y ago
    I mentioned the US because it has only 2 political parties, which have quite similar political programs and even more similar (in the course of my lifetime) governing styles. It's not much different in Slovenia; same politicians for the past 25 years, with little change possible.
nkoren 12y ago
I've worked on many urban planning and transport infrastructure projects in India, since 2001, and have seen first-hand how the Congress government have sent the country into a mire in recent years (after what I regarded as a very promising start). Even when they were not actually corrupt, their decision-making processes became so poor that it was impossible to get anything done. I do have high hopes that Modi will change that. At the same time, nationalism is dangerous in any form. I remember the last BJP government -- I was living in Ahmedabad in the run-up to the riots, and got out a few days beforehand, as it was increasingly clear that Something Bad was about to go down -- and I remember the way that Vajpayee would beat the war drums with Pakistan whenever anything he needed to divert attention from something on the home front. Hopefully Modi has learned that fanning the flames of communal and international tension is not, in fact, to India's benefit. If Modi can stay focused on cleaning up the government, building infrastructure, and generally making the country a less difficult place to get things done, then India can resume its trajectory towards becoming one of the world's great powers. If, on the other hand, he goes for the cheaper and easier political points that one can score by slagging off Muslims, then I fear that India will tear itself apart, leading to far worse outcomes than Congress could have achieved. On balance, I'm optimistic that he will steer towards the former more than the latter, but I'll be watching carefully.
danmaz74 12y ago
Our of curiosity, what do you think about the events in Gujarat in 2002?
- kshatrea 12y ago
  It is deplorable and a very tragic set of events. I wasn't there, so I had to depend on the media for my consumption of news. The Supreme Court of India has declared Narendra Modi as legally not guilty of any crimes. From the news it certainly seems the Court has erred, although it is a constitutional body and as a citizen I need to abide by its judgement. There are of course Indian citizens who charge that the media is bought and paid for, just like other countries. If you're asking why I voted for the BJP, in my city the local BJP leader is very good and the other party leaders are very corrupt.
  - monsterix 12y ago
    > The Supreme Court of India has declared Narendra Modi as legally not guilty of any crimes. This is not true. SC has said in 'absence of sufficient proof' and such. Please do your homework.
    - Aradalf 12y ago
      And thus not guilty....
  - danmaz74 12y ago
    I understand, thanks for the answer.
- discardorama 12y ago
  The sad reality is: there are riots in India with depressing frequency. The riots in Gujarat were not an aberration; such things happen all over the place. That doesn't answer your question; but I'm laying the groundwork. The Congress Party (which has been ruling India for the vast majority of the time since India became independent) realized, early on, that Modi was a threat and to counter this threat, they made every attempt to tar him with the guilt of 2002. No other Chief Minister of any other state has ever been held to such standards. Bear in mind: this is the same Congress Party whose members went on a rampage in 1984, killing/burning 4000+ Sikhs in Delhi when Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her bodyguards. They even came out and said, basically, "meh, bad things happen". The large number of Sikh deaths was _directly_ a result of their deliberate inaction. I know; I was in Delhi at that time. The Army was not called out for days, just so the bloodletting could continue. For this party to turn around and accuse Modi of orchestrating the 2002 riots is a sick joke.

Osmium 12y ago

I found this article very informative for an outsider: http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21600106-he-will-probably-become-indias-next-prime-minister-does-not-mean-he-should-be-can-anyone http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21600106-he-will-proba... I'm not advocating the conclusions or opinions in the article (I simply don't know enough, and I know this article was controversial too), but it's an interesting read.

amjd 12y ago
It's behind a paywall. :/
- tomp 12y ago
  Use incognito/anonymous browsing mode.
  - amjd 12y ago
    Thanks, that worked. :)
- danmaz74 12y ago
  Are you using Chrome? Ctrl+shift+n and you can read it :)

tokenadult 12y ago

Submitted in part because a Hacker News participant recently berated Americans on Hacker News for not being more aware of the election in India. (The person who wrote that comment is an American of Indian heritage, I'm pretty sure.) I was drawn to this article from the Google News news aggregator because it was listed as one of the "in-depth" articles. I was also startled by the title because until now I haven't heard most news reports as I have been following the election in India describing Modi as "pro-business." That's an issue I have no opinion about. I will note for the record that I think a democratic election in a LARGE, multilingual country is an interesting process of human society. Participants here who dream of building startup businesses with truly worldwide reach will want to know how economic development is proceeding in the world's second-most-populous country. (Based on likely trends, India will eventually become the world's most populous country in my lifetime.) I think a free press and contested elections give India a lot of advantages over other countries and can serve as an example to China and other large countries still developing to higher living standards. AFTER EDIT: Now that this is a breaking news story, I'll list a few other English-language reports on the election results here as I gather them from my usual news aggregator. "Modi Brings India's Opposition Into Power at Last. Now What?" (BloombergBusinessweek) http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-05-16/modi-brings-indias-opposition-into-power-at-last-dot-now-what http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-05-16/modi-brings-... "Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi claims victory as India's next prime minister" (CNN) http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/16/world/asia/india-election-result/ http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/16/world/asia/india-election-... "There are no enemies in democratic politics: Modi" (The Hindu, a newspaper from India) http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/there-are-no-enemies-in-politics-and-democracy-modi/article6016990.ece http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/there-are-no-enemies-i... As before, I am not a voter in India, so I don't have a particular opinion about the voters' choice in the most recent national election in India.

kshatrea 12y ago
Thanks for the clarification - you've very politely reduced my objections to dust.
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]

cmadan 12y ago

Here's a short summary to help others who haven't heard much about him. Short background - Has been the Chief Minister (equivalent to Governer) of the Western Indian state of Gujarat for 14 years now. The Good --- * Achieved a very high GDP growth rate for Gujarat * Made Gujarat a preferred destination for big industrialists to set up their factories since he gives land & clearances very readily. * Developed infrastructure in Gujarat - built roads, highways, flyovers. * Known to rule with an iron fist - a "my way or the highway" style of politician. The Bad --- * Accused of not practising all inclusive development. Critics point to poor performance of metrics such as child mortality rates, education, Human Development Index (HDI) etc. * Many believe that he did not do enough to stop the Gujarat riots in 2001 where 1000 people were killed. After this incident, the governments of US and UK denied Modi a visa to enter their countries * Describes himself as a "Hindu nationalist", has a history of making communally charged statements although seems to have cleaned up in recent years focusing on development. The Ugly --- * Believes homosexuality is unnatural and is against repealing an 100+ year old law which makes gay sex a criminal offence. * Formed political alliances with leaders such as Yeddyurappa who has many cases of corruption pending and parties such as Shiv Sena who are notorious for using violence to target ethnic groups.

breitling 12y ago
From what I've read about this guy, there seems to be a lot more to add to the "ugly" column. - He equates the plight of muslims murdered in 2002 to a puppy run over by a car [1]. - He has been a life long member of party's most militant wing [2]. - He's not shy about delivering flagrant speeches. Seems to be a very divisive figure. If I were one of the minorities in India, this would be a very disappointing day. [1] http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/07/12/narendra-modi-puppy-reuters-interview-idINDEE96B08S20130712 http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/07/12/narendra-modi-puppy... [2] http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2014/05/14/why_indians_should_fear_a_bjp_election_win_siddiqui.html http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2014/05/14/why_ind...
- yepyepyep 12y ago
  I no longer live in India but have a large extended family that does. Being in the minority, they are filled with paranoia about what this could mean. I'm still skeptical if anything bad will happen but I am also not living there.

higherpurpose 12y ago

What are his opinions on mass surveillance in India, which seems to have become about as aggressive as it is in US and UK in the past few years, or has that issue not even been raised? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A91idibgT0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A91idibgT0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwCixZk0snM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwCixZk0snM

unmole 12y ago
His party is all for 'stronger anti-terrorism' laws. I wouldn't be surprised if they pushed through a more Orwellian version of POTA[0] [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevention_of_Terrorism_Act,_2002 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prevention_of_Terrorism_Act,_20...

eshvk 12y ago

When I last used to be interested in Indian politics ( around 10 years ago). The man was supposed to be a local extreme right wing politician with genocidal tendencies. I am rather surprised that "pro-business" was the tagline the HN post finally went with. Has the man changed since?

ecthiender 12y ago
Ha ha! Good observation.

joosters 12y ago

Note that 'pro-business' is a politically empty phrase. After all, no candidate in any election would claim to be 'anti-business'. If the opposite to any given political standpoint is completely unacceptable, then IMO that makes the original viewpoint empty and meaningless.

icebraining 12y ago
"No candidate" is too strong a word; around here we have a few that are certainly anti-business. (EDIT: Note that I'm not an US citizen, and this is not a jab at anyone, it's a statement of fact. I can assure you that the candidate of the Reorganized Movement of the Party of the Proletariat is indeed anti-business)
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
- icebraining 12y ago
  Another alternative is how Luis Zingales puts it: "Pro-market, not necessarily pro-business". Though to some this might be a distinction without a difference, I prefer this viewpoint.
Brakenshire 12y ago
> Note that 'pro-business' is a politically empty phrase. After all, no candidate in any election would claim to be 'anti-business'. Not sure I agree, for instance no candidate would claim to be 'anti-life', but that doesn't make 'pro-life' a politically empty phrase. In that case, you know exactly what someone means by it. But pro-business is definitely vague. It might just as well mean 'friendly with industrialists' as wanting to spark wide-based growth.
- joosters 12y ago
  True, a good counterexample! I think in general it is a good rule of thumb to evaluate political statements by. There are elections coming up near me soon and several candidates like to claim that they will 'support the local community'. Strangely no-one is against that!

intull 12y ago

It might also be worth mentioning the numbers here. The BJP, party to which Mr. Narendra Modi belongs to, alone has got more than 50% of the seats in the Indian Parliament and nearly 60% with allies. The INC (Indian National Congress) has suffered a historic defeat with not even 10% of the seats. Which also brings the interesting fact that the NDA will not have a Leader of Opposition as none of the other parties hold more than 10% of the seats.

datacog 12y ago
> Which also brings the interesting fact that the NDA will not have a Leader of Opposition That is not true. INC can form alliances to claim opposition. The sad part is, they still want Rahul Gandhi to lead it. http://www.fakingnews.firstpost.com/2014/05/congress-looking-for-allies-to-form-an-opposition-in-lok-sabha/ http://www.fakingnews.firstpost.com/2014/05/congress-looking...
- amjd 12y ago
  In case you didn't notice, the article you linked is from Faking News, India's version of The Onion.

geekam 12y ago

With his deep ties with big business families I doubt this "pro-business" is anything but pro corps. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/meghabahree/2014/03/12/doing-big-business-in-modis-gujarat/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/meghabahree/2014/03/12/doing-big...)

pessimizer 12y ago

Pro-business is a really narrow way of describing Modi's ideology. Here's a disturbingly comprehensive post that paints a more complete picture: Narendra Modi and the rise of India’s neo-fascist Far-Right: The facts http://www.loonwatch.com/2014/04/narendra-modi-and-the-rise-of-indias-neo-fascist-far-right-the-facts/ http://www.loonwatch.com/2014/04/narendra-modi-and-the-rise-...

cstross 12y ago

Calling Modi "pro-business" seems like a bit of an over-simplication. He's a member of the RSS ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashtriya_Swayamsevak_Sangh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashtriya_Swayamsevak_Sangh ), which is arguably a violently anti-muslim paramilitary group, as well as leading the BJP (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharatiya_Janata_Party https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharatiya_Janata_Party). It's not unreasonable to call the BJP centre-right on economic/business issues ... but they have other policies as well, some of which are rather disturbing. I'm not Indian and have no connection to the sub-continent. But it does not fill me with the warm fuzzies to read in wikipedia that: "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."

abhidilliwal 12y ago
I just believe in data and not articles, here is something to check. http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B&Muslim=20-40%25 http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B&Muslim=20-40%25
- mxfh 12y ago
  What are you trying to show by this, if you don't give anything to compare it to? try: http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Muslim=40%25%2B or hindi: http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Hindi http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Hindi vs non-hindi http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Rest http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Hindi-speaking=Rest Also can someone explain what bi-polar means in this context (best guess so far, single party majority in voting district)? It looks very distinct: http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Bi-polar=Bi-polar http://ibn.gramener.com/live?Bi-polar=Bi-polar
- DangerousPie 12y ago
  I assume this supposed to show that his party did well in districts with large Muslim populations? I am not sure what you are trying to say with this. If you are claiming that this means that he can't be that anti-Muslim then I think that's far from the only possible explanation. For one, you are showing every district with at least 20% Muslim population. So even if every one of them had voted for the opposition, the 80% non-Muslims would have still decided the election.

kang 12y ago

A corrupt Business Model. BJP (the party under Modi's leadership) allegedly spent 100 billion Rs on advertisement. Like cunning businessman they exploited a loophole in the law; the parties are exempted from disclosing the source of their income! With this amount of money, every child in India could be educated for free. Imagine that for a second. The huge spendings, presenting a lipstick-on-a-pig development model of Gujrat[1] and bogus-voting (with many people publicly claiming to do so[2] to no brunt by the law) BJP has won these elections. The money input allegedly came from businessmen Ambani & Adani. They gained 1.5 billion dollars today itself![3] Adani has quadrupled in value over past 6 months. A very sad day for the minorities indeed. But India is so huge that even if a thousand die, people are unaffected. People have a very weak memory and any deed, howsoever bad, is easily forgotten within days. Add to that the ignorance of people to indirect influence of any event; people wont respond until they get the heat directly. I have lost hope. I feel I don't understand the majority of my nation. [1](I worked in the capital of Gujrat) [2]http://indianexponent.com/scrapbook/he-bragged-he-voted-18-times-for-bjp-and-this-is-how-its-done-in-muzaffarnagar/ http://indianexponent.com/scrapbook/he-bragged-he-voted-18-t... [3] http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-16/india-s-ambani-adani-gain-1-5-billion-in-a-day-on-modi-victory.html http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-16/india-s-ambani-adan...

abhigupta 12y ago
To put it another way, Majority of Indians don't understand or your share your beliefs either. Simply put, Modi won because Indian people believed he represents a better alternative to anyone out there by wide margin. I find it hard to put much credibility in the above ideas, when it is implied that somehow stock market going up and Ambani and Adani companies increasing their Market Cap is caused by them potentially donating money to an opposition candidate in an election and caused for concern!
chaofguan 12y ago
Mods , please take this post. This is blatant hatred.
- kefka 12y ago
  Just because you do not agree does not make it hatred.

linux_devil 12y ago

Correction : Certainly not historic , when you say historic would like to correct you that in 1984 , INC (2014 runner-up party) won 414 seats . One of the party which was crowdsourced "AAP" won only 4 seats but certainly show a ray of hope when leadership has been tossed between both these parties since Independence .

monsterix 12y ago

I usually do not write comments on politicians, but being an Indian I feel sad that someone like Narendra Modi has even been considered for the post of Prime Minister by my countrymen. Let alone the decision to elect him for the top job. But so it is, he is now the PM, and I accept what democracy and fate has asked me to accept and go with. Having said that I am yet to understand why the following murders by the Godman himself have remain unsolved so far: To inform and remind people there are quite a few murders that have been carried out by Modi, Amit Shah and D. G. Vanzara: 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haren_Pandya http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haren_Pandya This guy was the Home Minister of Gujarat and key witness to implicate Modi to confess former's role in execution of 3000 children and women in Godhra Kand. 2. http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/kausar-bi-wa.. http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/kausar-bi-wa... Wife of the hitman used to kill 1 above. 3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Soharbuddin_.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Soharbuddin_... The hitman. 4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishrat_Jahan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishrat_Jahan Unsolved. 5. The guy with direct reporting to Amit Shah and Narendra Modi: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D.G._Vanzara http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D.G._Vanzara The hitman with a uniform. 6. and there are several hundred other cases which could and could not surface above Modi's close quarters. Here is a video of a few criminals who proudly discuss how they went on killing entire families of a particular faith, and how Modi gave them the strength, protection and instruction to do so: 7. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFZBNUnG5pI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFZBNUnG5pI I am actually reassessing the value in the concept of democracy lately. I think tyrannies almost always figure out a way to come on the top. It's like seeded alongside the Third Law of Thermodynamics.

cscurmudgeon 12y ago
Let us apply a non zero amount of critical thinking and logic. > Narendra Modi and his team of murderers You either have evidence for that statement or you don't. 1. If it is the first, go to the courts, else you will be deemed complicit in the murders. 2. If it is the latter, you are not telling the truth. Which one is it?
- monsterix 12y ago
  You mean go to a Modi controlled court and ask milord Modi "where should I seek justice against the crimes you have been doing?" I am sure you are smarter than this.

darwinGod 12y ago

To those very new to India's politics, there are few things to consider before forming an opinion of Modi's involvement in the 2002 riots. (a) The Government in power at the center was the opposition party ( Congress) throughout the last decade. (2004-214). If they had the power to twist Supreme court's arm (appointment of judges etc), they would have most certainly done that, and influenced the outcome. (b) The Government at the Center (2004-2014) has had at its disposal the main investigative body of the country (CBI) to do any arm-twisting against Modi. (c)Despite this, and despite intense media scrutiny in India, if the Supreme Court- the highest court in India- has given Modi a clean chit on his involvement in the riots, then sufficient respect has to accorded to the same. It is significantly way,way,WAY more authoritative than any wannabe-investigative journalists airing their opinions non-stop on television or highly-viewed blog articles. Let that sink in. If a thousand well-indexed news articles/ well followed blogs paint a different picture, that does not change facts. The Supreme court of India has been known to be strong and independent,even openly rebuking the Center for it's stupidity and corruption ( Search for 2G-Spectrum scam). True we have a lot of corruption everywhere,but the arm-chair dismissal of Indian Supreme Court's weightage- by Indians ourselves- against top 10 google search results - pains me. If Indians ourselves cant do that, how can we expect the global audience to form an informed opinion?

anuraj 12y ago

Remains to be seen whether this will usher in economic revival or the country drifts to religious strife - Modi has potential for both.

harmonicon 12y ago

While economic development are very important, I hope Mr. Modi will not bend over backward for business interests just to return the favor. Excessive corporate tax cuts and environmental damage all set back the lives of the "lay people".

sgaunt 12y ago

The greatest trick Modi pulled is not convincing people that he is not responsible for the 2002 pogrom. Lots of people believe that he is directly or indirectly responsible. But somehow he convinced people that it doesn't matter. Also 10 years of corrupt, incompetent congress goverment made people desperate for change. This reminds me of The Dark Knight quote "You crossed the line first, sir. You hammered them and in their desperation they turned to a man they didn't fully understand". The election battle looked like Kerry vs Bush. Rahul Gandhi looked so weak and incompetent to lead a country whereas Modi projected himself strong(with 52 inch chest!). His PR machinery was so effective that, BJB couldn't have produced the same result with some other leader. My guess is even Modi/BJB was replaced in 5 years, the fallout of this government will stay longer.

deleted 12y ago

[deleted]

not_that_noob 12y ago

I find the Internet supporters of Modi/RSS/BJP a fascinating tribe. They are usually well-educated intelligent Indians, but with a marked tendency to turn off their critical-thinking faculties when the latter is mentioned. In addition, they expend enormous amounts of energy on the Internets trying in futility to paper over the obvious, and play the 'it's-all-a-aniti-hindu-conspiracy-card'. Hence the down votes for rather straightforward factual comments below.

not_that_noob 12y ago
Your down vote confirms my statement above. Hiding the truth doesn't make it untrue.
yepyepyep 12y ago
It just tells you that we all have serious blindspots. These super smart people, if they took a step back one day to review their logic, they would probably be very embarrassed.

WasimBhai 12y ago

After 60 years, just as Pakistan is unraveling with religious extremism that has permeated the fabric of society, India elects Modi, someone who has been a life long member of RSS, a fascist Hindu organization, and have often been accused of being complicit in Gujarat pogroms of 2002. An India, which was founded upon the principles of egalitarianism, a Pakistan which was to be a homeland for minorities. 60 years, and both of those principles falling to pieces in each of the states.

ayushgta 12y ago

"Commentators have sought to explain Modi to non-Indians, deploying numerous comparisons to do so; but the one that works best, in my opinion, is to see him as a kind of Indian (or Hindu) Ariel Sharon." http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/05/16/modi-crushes-gandhi-in-india-s-election-landslide.html http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/05/16/modi-crushe...

pagade 12y ago

Time magazine article - http://time.com/102768/narendra-modi-boy-from-the-backyard/ http://time.com/102768/narendra-modi-boy-from-the-backyard/

chaofguan 12y ago

Entire tone of comments is filled with hatred. Downvote as hell as you want. I think most comments are by shills or ignorant , narcissist US people who pretend to be intelligent and always believe what is in media rather than seeking the truth.

tn13 12y ago

A lot of people have turned into sulking mode and are claiming that Mr. Modi is some kind of draconian third world dictator who is now going to kill many people in India. Even though it may appear to ordinary westerners please be assured that this is far far away from the truth.

known 12y ago

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste_politics_in_India https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste_politics_in_India

maheshs 12y ago

People who claim Modi ia a pro development are ill informed. If Gujarat is a "model" than at least 5-6 states are in India which you can call "super model". Link contains state ranking on various Index (Right Navigation). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Indian_states_and_territories_by_Human_Development_Index http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Indian_states_and_terri... People of Gujarat were always pro business and evidence for the same is, people of Since independence, people of Gujarat are least dependent upon government jobs and having low un-employment rate always. Now why Modi was elected. Reason is same the way congress was winning in last 50 years. Media, Propaganda, Mix politics with religion and wrap all those into "Hope".