India’s Muslims quiver in the new dawn of an emboldened Narendra Modi – By Michael Safi
…A day after the Hindu nationalist prime minister, Narendra Modi, claimed a landslide election victory, some in the congregation were anxious about whether this new country had a place for them. “These days, it isn’t safe for us here any more,” said Haji Shezhad Khan, the chairman of a local Muslim activist group, sitting in a shaded courtyard a few metres from the mosque.
For many Indian Muslims – whose population of about 200 million would comprise the seventh-largest country on earth – Modi’s emphatic re-electionhas been an isolating experience.
The country’s most acrimonious election campaign in recent history was studded with references to unauthorised migrants from Bangladesh as “termites”, the nomination to parliament of a Hindu accused of terrorism and a debate over whether Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin – who killed the founding father for supposedly cowing to Muslim demands – was in fact a patriot. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, a record 270 million Indians cast their votes for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) or its allies.…
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/may/26/india-muslims-narendra-modi-bjp-new-dawn
SEE ALSO:
- Political sidelining of Muslims holds ominous signs – By Afroz Alam (May 24, 2019, Economic Times)
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/political-sidelining-of-muslims-holds-ominous-signs/articleshow/69477755.cms - Understanding the rise of the ‘Modi juggernaut’-2.0 and its ramifications on the India’s Muslim Masses – By Badre Alam Khan (May 27, 2019, Countercurrents)
https://countercurrents.org/2019/05/understanding-the-rise-of-the-modi-juggernaut-2-0-and-its-ramifications-on-the-indias-muslim-masses - Resilience and Resolve: Muslim response to saffronization of India – By Syed Qayam Ali (May 25, 2019, Siasat)
https://www.siasat.com/news/resilience-and-resolve-muslim-response-saffronization-india-1500149/ - A Modi Victory Puts India’s 200 Million Muslims in Danger – By Ruchira Gupta (May 21, 2019, The Nation)
https://www.thenation.com/article/india-election-modi-bjp-pragya-singh-thakur/
