Narendra Modi is the new Indira Gandhi, but much worse

In 1984, Stuart Auerbach of The Washington Post describe Indira Gandhi as “Mother India” or “Empress of India” to her supporters. A rather sycophantic president of her party declared: “Indira is India and India is Indira. Auerbach referred to Indiras' rule as a kind of personal rule rarely found among great modern nations.

Indira was the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister from 1966. Note that she was not related to Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the Indian nation. Fortunately, many of the hundreds of millions of illiterate Indian voters and ignorant foreigners never realized this fact. Indira destroyed internal democracy within the Congress Party, centralized all power in her hands and appointed her sons as her designated successors.

Indira ruled India as a de facto dictator for 21 months from June 25, 1975. During this period, she imprisoned journalists, political opponents and even prominent Gandhians (supporters of the Mahatmas) who had participated in India's freedom struggle. Indira did not even spare old Jayaprakash Narayan, the most prominent Gandhian alive in the 1970s, sending him to jail, just like the British once did. His son Sanjay forced millions of men to cross sterilizationanticipating the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) commitment to population control.

In 1977, Indira called elections which she believed would result in a massive victory. Instead, voters ousted her and opted for a ramshackle opposition coalition. It was the first time that the grand old Congress Party had lost power in New Delhi. Since then, India has for decades avoided facing Indira-style authoritarianism again.

Unfortunately, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been a game-changer since he was elected to power in 2014. He has been particularly authoritarian since winning a second term in 2019. . Millions of people in India now say these are difficult times. second emergency and for good reason.

Modis' measures have made him an Indira-like figure

Modi has embarked on a power grab of historic proportions. In Delhi, it is an open secret that the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) rules the country with an iron fist. Even ministers in Modis cabinet have no real power. The favored Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers, largely from Gujarat (Modis' home state), are the new barons and dukes who rule in the prime minister's name.

Just as Indira weakened the Congress Party, Modi undermined the BJP. Interior Minister Amit Shah is the only one with real power. Members of the BJP and its parent organization, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), call Modi and Shah Ranga and Billa, two criminals of ill repute who kidnapped and killed two siblings in 1978. Their argument is that Modi and Shah have kidnapped the BJP and the RSS, and their absolutism, could kill these two organizations, which have always been grassroots-led organizations.

Just as Modi has sidelined the BJP and the RSS, he has also undermined the institutions of the Indian state. The democratic principles of decentralization, accountability and separation of powers no longer matter in Modis India. Everyone in government must dance to their master's voice.

Modi has used the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to persecute anyone who does not toe his line. The Modi government has used the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to hound business leaders, journalists and political opponents. Before the Supreme Court of India intervened on March 21, 2024, those accused under the PMLA were not even eligible for bail. The selective use of UAPA, PMLA and other legislations has created a culture where rule by the law, not the rule of the law dominates. Simply put, the government uses the law to lock up or harass individuals it doesn't like.

Institutions are now Modis’ instruments to target his opponents. In March, the government frozen the bank accounts of the Congress Party for non-payment of outstanding taxes. The authorities too stopped Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), for corruption and money laundering. Even many BJP/RSS leaders admit that the ED and CBI are now dogs chasing hares for Modi and Shah. After Indira, India is once again gripped by a climate of fear.

Press freedom has collapsed. Modi has not given a single press conference since he became prime minister. The Adani group, its financial backers, bought New Delhi Television (NDTV), the anglicized television channel most opposed to Modi. Former NDTV stars now ply their trade on YouTube or on Al Jazeera. No local TV station hires them.

The print media is entirely under the control of the Modi government and social media bends to its will. After all, Twitter and Facebook make a lot of money in India and are reluctant to antagonize the Modi government, which could hurt their bottom line. Additionally, the Modi government has a sophisticated social media system that spreads propaganda, disinformation and even fake news.

Modi's dangerous lies and anti-Muslim propaganda campaign

The Modis social media team has bombed WhatsApp with stories that Nehrus' grandfather was a Muslim. According to these stories, this grandfather was born in a red light district, a part of an Indian city where prostitutes live and where the family still remains Muslim today. The campaign portrays Nehru as a lover of beef, alcohol and nubile young women. According to this account, Nehru was a man of moral turpitude, unfit to lead pious Hindus.

Many analysts have pointed out how the Modi-led BJP imposed Hindu fascism in India. Note that Modi has never expressed regret, let alone apology, for the 2002 Gujarat riots. This happened under his watch, when he was chief minister and the US State Department had banned Modi from entering the US due to his alleged involvement in these brutal riots.

This year, Modi has inaugurated a temple dedicated to the Hindu god Ram on the site of a medieval mosque, believed to have been built on an ancient Hindu religious site. Modi personally participated in an elaborate religious ceremony in a blatant religious appeal for votes.

The Modi government plans to implement the Citizen Amendment Act (CAA) providing Indian citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from India's neighboring countries. Opponents question why Parsis or Muslim sects such as Ahmadis are not included in the CAA. The answer is simple: Modi is mobilizing Hindu votes and weakening the secular fabric of the Indian republic.

For good reason, the BBC has just published a story of 200 million Indian Muslims becoming invisible in their own country. Hindu militiamen lynched Muslims suspected of eating beef. Mosques are increasingly under threat. Discussions of love jihad between Muslim men marrying Hindu women and converting them to Islam are commonplace. Anti-Muslim hate speech has skyrocketedespecially in BJP-ruled states.

This victimization of minorities brings India closer to Pakistan. Secular democracy in India has been a beacon of hope for countries across the world as a shining example of how different religions and diverse communities can co-exist. The Modi-led BJP government and the RSS have slowly spread poison into the veins of Indian society. If this continues, India will make Yugoslavia look like a firecracker. By deepening and widening the Hindu-Muslim divide, Modi threatens the very idea of ​​India.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policies of Fair Observers.