Why Modi dominates his opponents in Indian elections

As the world's largest democracy prepares to hold its eighteenth general elections in stages starting April 19, an air of inevitability prevails over the likely outcome. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to retain power with a landslide victory. Few doubt that Modi will secure a third consecutive five-year term, a feat only India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, had accomplished.

Historically speaking, India is in the Modi era. There have already been eras embodied by incredibly popular politicians in India. Nehru (1947-1964) and his daughter Indira Gandhi (1966-1977 and 1980-1984) walked like colossi in Indian politics. Today, let it be opinion polls or the state-level election resultsthe average Indian's favorite politician and favorite party is obvious.

The unrelenting success of the Modi juggernaut can be explained by five factors. First, Modi is seen as uniting and strengthening India as a nation by a plurality of voters. His efforts to transform an extremely diverse country into a single nation with a national consciousness arouses deep emotions among the masses.

Overcoming divisions based on language and caste and imbuing every region of India with a comprehensive national sentiment through mass campaigns as Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat (One India, Best India) have generated a broader sense of unity, which benefits the BJP in the national general elections.

Presentations in international media and by Modi's opponents at home that India has become highly divided and polarized by “Hindu fundamentalism” and BJP intolerance. does not find resonance with ordinary Indian voters. Many Indians view voting for Modi in the elections as a vote for a unified India.

Secondly, Modi is closely associated with national strength and solidity. Unlike the 1989-2014 period, when shaky coalition governments made up of disparate groups of parties were the norm, the Modi era has produced governments with a clear majority and a decisive mandate from voters to let the BJP govern firmly and keep its promises. Modi the bugle campaigns For the elections, the fact that India needs a “stable government with an unequivocal majority” appeals to many voters who believe that the continuity of the regime is necessary for the development of the nation.

Third, Modi appears to many Indian voters as a modernizer who is spearheading the country's economic rise. Its technocratic style of governance, marked by a “the art of implementation”, transmits fundamental skills in administrative matters. In a vast and chaotic democracy where the rule of law is lacking, Modi's mastery over the smallest public policies and his personal involvement in almost all matters of governance assure voters that they have a civil servant “24 hours a day”. 24, 7 days a week.” chief.

Fourth, Modi is a symbol of clean governance. The absence of a single credible corruption scandal involving the central government since he became prime minister in 2014 is an exceptional record. Her messages during electoral campaign meetings “I was not born to enjoy life, but to work hard for you,” resonates in the working class. Smoother and corruption-free delivery of social protection programs to the poor is key factors for Modi's intact popularity.

Finally, Modi's magic among voters relies on his projection as the spearhead of India's upward trajectory in international affairs. His personal chemistry with world leaders, his landmark foreign visits, his leadership of premier global institutions such as the G20, his rescue missions to save Indians stranded abroad and the distinctions that flow of prominent foreign figures and institutions are all to Modi's advantage in the elections.

The independent stances that India has taken on issues of international contention, often challenging its Western partners like the United States, have been very popular with young, middle-class voters who are patriotic and yearn for India to take a seat at the global high table alongside China and the United States. For them, Modi brings a national dream closer to realization. The centenary goals of a developed and powerful country under which Modi floated Viksit Bharat 2047 (named after the year in which India will celebrate 100 years of independence) make it clear to young voters that there is a long-term plan and method that will propel the country's future march to glory.

Modi's foreign and domestic critics obsessively repeat the alleged democratic decline and downgrading of religious minorities to the status of second class citizens in the Modi era. But the Indian electorate has yet to show sympathy or patience for such arguments. According to them, India is in the best possible hands.

Sreeram Chaulia is the Managing Director of Jindal India Institute at OP Jindal Global University in Sonipat, India. He is the author of two books on Narendra Modi:Modi Doctrine: the foreign policy of the Indian Prime Minister (2016), and Critical time: Narendra Modi's national security crises (2022).

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.