Elections in India: "great concern" over victory of Hindu nationalists
New Delhi (
AsiaNews) - With an absolute majority, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP, the
opposition party ) won the local elections in Rajasthan , Madhya Pradesh and
Chhattisgarh. An
important result , which sees the defeat of
Congress (secular, majority party) six months before the vote for the new
prime minister of India. According
to local Catholic AsiaNews sources,
the results "are quite serious. As Christians and a minority there is a
bit of concern because the BJP is backed by Hindu fundamentalist organizations
such as the Rashtriya Sawayamsevak Sangh
(RSS ) " .
In
Madhya Pradesh , the BJP won 165 seats , compared to 58 for Congress . In
Chhattisgarh the vote tight: here the Hindu nationalists won 49 seats, compared
to 39 for the the secular party . But
in Rajasthan the BJP victory was overwhelming: Congress, which for years has
led the Indian state, managed to win just 21 seats, against the 162 of its opponents
.
Delhi also went to vote. Here,
the BJP has emerged as the first party, with 31 seats out of 70, but the result
of the new anti-corruption party Aam Admi Party (AAP , "party of the
common man" ), was most impressive, winning 28 seats . A run-off is now
likely.
"The
concern - AsiaNews sources confirm -is
that we do not know how they will treat minorities, but there are still six
months to the general election, so let's see how Congress can react to this defeat." Of
course , they explain, " the party's inability to understand the Indian
peopke's exasperation at the corruption scandals counted. People do not want to
have anything to do with corrupt politicians. Moreover, its leaders have not
spoken with the
community about their program, what they want to do. There was a lack of
communication".
The
Congress was also penalized for certain "arrogance" shown towards allies
: " Despite being the leader of the majority coalition [ United
Progressive Alliance , ed] , every now and then it should have listened and
given space to smaller parties . The people do not like this attitude". Finally,
"even the high inflation has influenced the election. Costs of food and
other basic necessities are increasing. Even if the problem is resolved in the
long term and the economy continues to grow, right now the population is
feeling the pressure".
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