World's Largest Democratic Party Begins, Modi Predicted to Win

Quoting the Times of India page, even though there were calls to boycott the elections in the East Nagaland region, residents still seemed enthusiastic about going to the polling stations. In Assam District, residents were reported to have queued at the polling station since 06.00, one hour before the polling station opened. Rain did not prevent residents from coming to the polling stations.

The region of Manipur, which has often experienced sharp friction, is also included in the implementation of the first phase of the election. A number of local officials have called for extra security measures to maintain the electoral process. Manipur will hold two rounds of voting, on April 19 and 26.

Also read: Getting to Know the Indian Election, Participated by 2,400 Political Parties and Nearly 1 Billion Voters

Elections in Manipur were held amidst ethnic conflicts between the majority Meitei community and the Kuki-zo. According to Al Jazeera, more than 200 people have died due to clashes between the two groups of residents since May 2023. Election organizers set up hundreds of polling stations in 320 refugee camps that shelter around 60,000 residents.

Despite being shadowed by violence against minorities and calls for boycott, Modi is encouraging eligible voters to go to their designated polling stations and exercise their right to vote.

"The Lok Sabha elections in 2024 have started today! As 102 seats in 21 states and union territories begin to be determined, I urge all voters to exercise their right to vote in record numbers," wrote Modi on platform X, on Friday.

Easy win

In this election, Modi and BJP face dozens of opposition parties as their challengers. Many surveys show that BJP will easily win the majority of votes, even though some concerns have arisen during Modi's administration. These issues range from unemployment, inflation, to the cost of living pressures experienced by rural residents, amidst India's high economic growth rate.

Gurpartap Singh (22), who specializes in the field of agriculture in Punjab, believes that the Modi government does not think much about the potential of agriculture done by young people. However, India's grain production is expected to reach 330 million tonnes by 2023. The market reforms hoped for by Indian farmers are also not progressing.

Singh revealed that he would choose a leader and government that considers farmers, particularly young farmers. "A government that thinks of farmers and youth. That is the government that should be in power," said Singh, adding that the BJP has failed.

The opposition hopes to capitalize on these issues to gain stronger support in this election. They promise to put a stop to the decline of democracy and various challenges faced by the people.

Also read: India Holds the Largest and Longest Election in the World

Rahul Gandhi, leader of the Congress Party, the main opposition party, said that the people's demands regarding the pressure on the cost of living were seen as small by Modi and the top officials BJP even though this is clearly felt by the people. "Sometimes the PM is underwater in the ocean and sometimes he is in a seaplane, but does not speak on issues," Gandhi said.

However, it is not easy for the opposition to move. The opposition claims that they have been weakened by various regulations and allegations launched by BJP and Modi through government agencies and law enforcement. "We do not have the money to campaign, we cannot support our candidates," said Gandhi.

India, which is constitutionally secular, does not reflect that in its daily life. Minority groups and civil rights activists view the rise of Hindu nationalism as tending to push India further to the right. During Modi's government, there has been "a pattern of oppression that weakens democracy and civilian space," said human rights group CIVICUS in its report on Wednesday (April 17, 2024).

Chandrachur Singh, a political lecturer at Hindu College in Delhi, said that there are many real problems faced by the people of India that the opposition could actually use to gain votes. However, the opposition does not do so because the group is also divided. "That is what causes disappointment among voters and allows the BJP to move forward," he said.

Also read: Modi Plans for India to Rise to a Class to Become a Developed Country in the Next 25 Years

This can be seen from the survey conducted by Pew in 2023. As many as 80 percent of the Indian population tended to give positive appreciation to the Modi government and BJP.

Abhishek Dhotre (22), a student at the University of Mumbai, said that despite not being happy with the situation of communal disputes throughout India, he is pleased with the level of economic growth achieved by the country under the government of PM Modi. Dhotre wants Modi and BJP to win the election again.

"With the flow of development, infrastructure and everything that is happening, I prefer the current government to stay," he said.

Similarly, Thrishalini Dwaraknath (20) stated the same thing. She praised the Modi government for various achievements during their reign. However, she stated that the government needs to do more to help the millions of unemployed Indian youth to get jobs.

Economy has become the main slogan for Modi and the BJP to regain trust from voters. "In the next five years, we will bring this nation into the top three economies in the world, launch a massive attack on poverty, open up new growth paths, implement the next set of reform policies, and take a number of pro-people decisions and actions," wrote Modi in the BJP election manifesto. (AP/AFP/REUTERS)