#ModiNotWelcome: Outrage against Kathua Rapes Reaches London

The Prime Minister of India has been a mute spectator of the events in the country. Sadly, his silence about the incidents, which are impacting the very people who voted him into power, is primarily because it's his own party members who are supporting the ‘alleged’ rapists. The Prime Minister’s response was too late and too little.

There has been a global outrage against the brutal rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl, which has cornered the ruling Bhartiya Janta party. For days, when there were massive protests across cities in India, online signature campaign on Change.org, received over 15,00,000 signatures. Even a crowdfunding campaign had successfully raised more than 40,00,000 in five days for the Kathua and Unnao victim's families. But all the Prime Minister Narendra Modi was tweeting about, was Yoga. The Prime Minister’s response was too late and too little.

In order to express their outrage and their solidarity with the protests in India, South Asia Solidarity Group, an anti-imperialist, anti-racist organization based in Britain, planned a #ModiNotWelcome campaign in London, in line with Narendra Modi’s visit to the UK.

The organisation in a note said, "In the context of Indian PM Narendra Modi’s visit to the UK, we are deeply shocked at the gut-wrenching violence against women and children in India being defended by politicians of Modi’s ruling Hindu rightwing party, the BJP. Hindu extremists, or their associates, stand implicated in rape and murder while some BJP leaders actively mobilise to defend them and undermine the rule of law...The media must question Modi about the involvement of his party members in these atrocities and his government’s effective sanctioning of rapes, attacks on minorities and lawlessness," said the letter, which was signed by 55 violence-against-women organisations, feminist academics and activists.

It is ironic that when Narendra Modi is to talk on #BharatKiBaatSabkeSaath (Talking about India with Everyone) to showcase the ‘achievements’, of his government, there are protests against him with slogans such as ‘Protector of rapists’, ’Supporter of caste and Murders of Dalits’, ‘Proud Fascist and admirer of Hitler’, ‘Patron of Lynch-Mobs killing Muslims’

Protesters argue that with his silence on rape issues, and attacks on Dalits, Muslims and dissenters, Narendra Modi is taking India to new lows and not highs, as he had claims.