BJP's Victory & What It Portends

On May 16, when the results for the Lok Sabha elections were announced, people in Dakshina Kannada, and two days earlier on May 14, people in Hyderabad were able to feel what it would be like, in the days to come. Celebrating the victory of the Narendra Modi led-BJP at the centre, Sangh Parivar activists resorted to violence and attacked two Mosques in the Dakshina Kannada district. Indulging in hate crime, they stormed into the compound of the Mosque raising Hara-Hara Modi slogans and burst crackers at Kambalabettu in Vittla Moodnoor village of Bantwal taluk. The BJP workers damaged the window panes of another Masjid by pelting stones and destroyed a stage built to host religious programmes.

In another incident in the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh, in the capital city of Hyderabad, three Muslims were killed in a police firing following communal clashes on May 14. Eight people received bullet injuries and many others were badly injured in the clashes. It is widely held that the situation could have been controlled without firing on the people. The Kishan Bhag area where the incident occured has a sizeable presence of the BJP.

Is this a reflection of what is in store for the coming days? The divisive, abusive and communal election campaign that was unleashed by the BJP, specially during the last phases when the elections were about to be held in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, has been particularly virulent in ridiculing and insulting religious and sexual minorities, dalits and people with disabilities. Dissenting voices were intimidated and asked to leave the country. Amit Shah’s speeches in Muzaffarnagar, Praveen Togadia asking Muslims to be thrown out of “Hindu areas”, Modi's speeches that Bangladeshis would be pushed out with their baggages after May 16, are just to name a few.

Divisive politics remained the core under the ‘development’ story. It is clearly evident that unless the secular and democratic voices rise in unison and defend the pluralistic ethos, the unity and integrity of our country cannot be safeguarded.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are the author's personal views, and do not necessarily represent the views of Newsclick