Biden calls religious pluralism 'core principle' for India, US

HINDU NATIONALISM MEET CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM

AFP
Thu, June 22, 2023 

US President Joe Biden shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS)

President Joe Biden on Thursday called religious freedom a "core principle" for India and the United States, in a gentle nudge as he welcomed India's Hindu nationalist prime minister, Narenda Modi.

Modi has faced criticism over the rights of religious minorities in India, with rights groups alleging a blind eye to vigilante violence against Muslims and Christians.

"Equity under the law, freedom of expression, religious pluralism and diversity of our people -- these core principles have endured and evolve," Biden said at a ceremonial welcome to Modi at the White House. "Even as they have faced challenges throughout each of our nations' histories, and will fuel our strength, depth and future."

Biden and Modi, however, overwhelmingly stressed the positive as they opened talks set to focus on trade and defense, with the two democracies both seeing challenges from a rising China.

"I have long believed that the relationship between the US and India will be one of the most defining relationships of the 21st century," Biden said.

Modi said that both India and the United States had societies "based on democratic values."

"Both of our countries take pride in their diversity," Modi said. "Both of us believe in the fundamental principle of 'in the interest of all,' 'for the welfare of all.'"

"The two countries are committed to work together for the global good and for global peace, stability and prosperity. Our strong strategic partnership is a clear proof of the power of democracy," Modi added.

Biden Affirms Tighter U.S.-India Bond as Modi Waves Off Human Rights Concerns

Brian Bennett
Thu, June 22, 2023

President Joe Biden (R) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participate in an arrival ceremony at the White House on June 22, 2023 in Washington, DC.

 Credit - Anna Moneymaker—Getty Images

In nine years as India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi has rarely taken questions from the press. When a reporter at the White House asked Thursday what steps he was willing to take to improve the rights of Muslims and other minorities in India, Modi denied the premise.

The U.S. State Department has documented troubling encroachments on political rights and expression in India under Modi’s watch, and a rise in religious intolerance toward Muslims and other minorities. But, with President Biden standing next to him under the chandeliers of the East Room, Modi ignored all that.

“There is absolutely no discrimination,” Modi said.

It was a stark denial from India’s Prime Minister, who was being largely embraced during his trip to Washington but also challenged. After his White House visit, he was headed to the Capitol, where a handful of lawmakers planned to boycott his joint address to Congress. After that, Modi will be a guest of honor at a state dinner, only the third head of state to receive such an honor during Biden’s presidency.

Biden had said heading up to Modi’s visit that he would not ignore Modi’s human rights record. But if he raised any of those concerns with Modi during this visit, Biden left those behind closed doors.

“The prime minister and I had a good discussion about democratic values,” Biden said. “That’s the nature of our relationship. We are straightforward with each other and we respect each other.”

That respect is paying off for both countries. Modi and Biden announced this week a laundry list of significant ways that India and the U.S. are increasing military and business ties.

Aides to Biden and Modi have met for months to find ways to streamline tech and military cooperation between the two countries, who have not been traditional allies. The effort is part of Biden’s broader effort to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific and reduce the U.S. supply chain’s dependence on Beijing.

Timed for Modi’s trip to Washington, the two countries announced a deal for India’s Hindustan Aeronautics to build General Electric fighter-jet engines, a long-term move that stands to will weave India more tightly into the U.S. military industrial complex for decades to come.

India also agreed to buy MQ-9B SeaGuardian armed drones from San Diego-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, which will increase India’s aerial surveillance abilities in the region. And the U.S. is expanding “trusted shipyard” agreements with India to allow more US naval vessels to be repaired in Indian shipyards near Chennai, Mumbai and Goa.

In addition, the chip manufacturer Micron announced an $800 billion investment in a semiconductor assembly plant and test facility in India. And the U.S. company Applied Materials will build a new semiconductor research center in India.

Those decisions put India on track to be a closer military ally to the U.S. than it has been in the past. During the Cold War, India kept the U.S. at arm’s length and purchased Russian military equipment. President Bill Clinton worked to bridge ties with New Delhi in the 1990s, but in recent decades India’s leaders have been reluctant to be seen as a full throated ally of the U.S.

Modi himself has had tense relations with the U.S. before. In 2005, when Modi was the chief minister of the state of Gujarat, the U.S. denied him a diplomatic visa over violence by Hindu mobs in the state in 2002 that killed more than a thousand people, most of them Muslim. But whatever strain that may have caused, has eased. Modi previously addressed Congress in 2016, and he held a joint rally with Donald Trump in Houston in 2019.

Read more: Indian Americans in Congress Plan to Attend Modi Speech Amid Calls for Boycotts

Speaking in the White House on Thursday, Modi said his visit would have a “special importance in the history of India-America relations.”

“Our discussions today and the important decisions we have taken have added a new chapter to our comprehensive and global strategic partnership. They have given it a new direction and a new energy,” Modi said.

Earlier in the day, Modi’s arrival on the South Lawn of the White House was cheered on by 7,000 Indian-Americans. In his remarks greeting Modi, Biden said that he has “I’ve long believed that the relationship between the United States and India will be one of the defining relationships of the 21st century.”

India’s illiberal election

BJP ARE ARYAN SUPREMACISTS

Maleeha Lodhi 

DAWN

Published May 13, 2024 

GENERAL elections are underway in India in a phased voting process that concludes on June 1. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is widely predicted to win a third term in office. The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) goal is for its National Democratic Alliance to secure 400-plus seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha — a target encapsulated in the party slogan abki baar 400 paar. There are doubts this can be achieved, especially as voter turnout has been lower in the first three phases of the election compared to 2019. Election outcomes are never foregone conclusions.

In the 2019 election, the BJP won 303 seats. With its allies, its support in the Lower House swelled to 352 seats. This time, it hopes to win 370 seats on its own as it does not see the opposition as much of a challenge. Although the party secured comfortable parliamentary majorities in the previous two elections to enable it to rule unhindered in its decade in power, well over half the electorate did not vote for BJP. In 2019, BJP polled around 38 per cent of the popular national vote; in 2014 it was less than 31pc. This indicates its real support, even though the first-past-the-post electoral system gave it an outsized share of Lok Sabha seats.

The BJP has benefited from a weak, divided and regionally fragmented opposition. The Congress party looks jaded and bereft of new ideas. Leading an opposition alliance called ‘INDIA’ (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance), Congress has been unable to capture the public imagination or offer a credible alternative to the BJP’s narrative. It has struggled to counter Modi’s extravagant claims about his government’s achievements. Positive developments on India’s economic front have not all resulted from the Modi government’s policies but are entirely attributed to him by the BJP’s vigorous social media and propaganda campaign.

Modi’s carefully cultivated strongman image has yielded significant political dividends. This rests on claims of providing firm and incorruptible leadership, achieving economic development, benefiting India’s poor, and ‘connecting’ to ordinary people. More importantly, the Hindutva agenda is woven into his cult of personality, with the party portraying Modi as the champion and saviour of Hindu nationalism. His anti-Muslim actions and rhetoric have served to burnish those credentials.


The outlook for India-Pakistan relations is troubled if Modi returns to power.

Modi has sought to mobilise electoral support on his economic record, welfare and infrastructure projects, as well as his Hindu supremacist ideology. Even though rising unemployment and the soaring cost of living will weigh on voters’ minds, Modi is seen by many Indians to be a better bet on the economy than his opponents. He enjoys the backing of big business, for which the opposition accuses Modi of pandering to India’s super rich. In campaign speeches, Modi has repeatedly stated he has enhanced India’s international standing and helped to attract more foreign investment. He has even cast the election to be about making India “a major world power”.

The opposition’s attack on Modi has principally focused on his authoritarian conduct and policies. Certainly, democratic backsliding during his 10 years in power has been substantial and far reaching. This, his critics say, has turned India into an illiberal democracy. Judicial independence and media freedom have been undermined and civil liberties eroded. Modi’s government has muffled dissent, intimidated the media, harassed and incarcerated journalists and mounted extraordinary pressure on the opposition. Two state leaders allied with Congress, Arvind Kejriwal and Hemant Soren, have been jailed on dubious corruption charges. In March, the Congress party’s main bank accounts were frozen. Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi was expelled from parliament last year on the charge of defamation for ridiculing Modi’s name. Later, his jail sentence was suspended by the supreme court.

Modi has pledged to push ahead with his Hindutva agenda, for which the party points to several actions taken by the government, including construction of the Ram temple, a citizenship law disadvantaging Muslims, and revocation of Article 370 of the constitution, which gave Jammu and Kashmir special status. Modi has used toxic anti-Muslim rhetoric throughout his election campaign. He has called Muslims “infiltrators” and said they “have too many children” in an effort to scare Hindu voters into believing Muslims will eventually outnumber them. He has repeatedly accused the Congress party of favouring Muslims and conspiring to transfer wealth “looted” from Hindus to Muslims. The BJP has also posted videos containing these allegations. This prompted the Congress party to petition the election commission to act against this violation of election laws.

But nothing has deterred Modi from using inflammatory, Islamophobic language to demonise Muslims. He has even said his target of winning 400 seats is to prevent Congress from reviving Article 370 and putting the “Babri lock” on the Ram temple. Declaring “India is at a crucial juncture in history”, he has said the choice is between ‘vote jihad’ or ‘Ram Rajya’. He went further to say, “In Pakistan, terrorists are threatening jihad against India, and here the Congress people have also declared to ‘vote jihad’ against Modi, asking people of a particular religion to unite and vote against Modi.”

Along with Muslim-bashing, Pakistan too has been targeted by Modi’s incendiary rhetoric. He has contrasted his muscular approach in dealing with terrorism allegedly emanating from Pakistan with the infirm response of his predecessors. “Earlier, weak governments used to send dossiers to Pakistan after terror attacks, but we hit terrorists in their homes” — a reference to India’s air strikes on Balakot in 2019. Describing his government’s “new India policy of looking an adversary in the eye and speaking the truth rather than resorting to stealth,” he has warned of launching cross-border strikes in response to terror attacks on India. He has also ridiculed Pakistan by saying “a supplier of terrorism is now struggling for flour”.

This makes the outlook for Pakistan-India relations a troubled one if Modi returns to power. Some may dismiss Modi’s Pakistan-bashing as election politics, but words have consequences. Moreover, anti-Pakistan and anti-Muslim themes are a part of his and the BJP’s deeply held beliefs. This may not preclude some form of post-election India-Pakistan re-engagement, but it is unlikely in the near term to lead to any significant movement toward normalisation of ties.

The writer is a former ambassador to the US, UK and UN.

Published in Dawn, May 13th, 2024

Modi won’t go down sans a fight

Jawed Naqvi 

DAWN

Published May 14, 2024 

MOST neutral observers are sanguine that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is winning a third term. Let’s put it this way, it isn’t a foregone conclusion that Mr Modi is losing the election, which crossed its fourth of seven phases on Monday, despite compelling pointers he could. The assumption of his defeat is based on broad headcounts computed by seasoned analysts.

On the other side is the unceasing clamour from ‘Modi channels’, amid communal dog-whistling by anchors, that he is winning 400-plus seats. That’s a two-thirds majority with which we are told he would change the constitution. Adding weight to the claim of a Modi victory is psephologist Prashant Kishore’s assessment that the BJP could become the single largest party in West Bengal and Odisha. He says the BJP could make inroads for the first time in Tamil Nadu or at least its vote share in the state would hit double digits. That’s good news for Modi, but Kishore does have a mixed reputation at predicting poll outcomes.

We can discuss both sides of the claim and draw our respective conclusions. The question is, would Mr Modi accept defeat if it does come calling. Or would he take the Donald Trump route on losing, whipping up a terrifying frenzy instead? There are many variables to say just what the verdict could be at the hustings, not least because publishing the findings of exit polls is officially banned until the last vote is cast. Exit polls would come on June1, although there can be no certainty about their veracity either. That’s what experience shows. Thus, we must wait for the outcome till June 4.

But let’s hear from Yogendra Yadav, veteran former psephologist who recently became a member of Rahul Gandhi’s cross-country unity march for democracy. He said in a TV analysis on Monday after visiting key battleground states and noting the relatively low voter turnout that Mr Modi was likely to lose. “Election karvat le raha hai,” he said. (The election is changing course.)

The phrase is commonly heard on YouTube channels watching the elections from the ground, a far cry from regular TV channels that have already declared a victory for Mr Modi. Bunching the states in the fray including those that scored the maximum for the BJP in 2019, Yadav estimated those where Modi could lose a few, not least because there was no way to increase the tally from 100 per cent wins as in Gujarat or Rajasthan and Haryana or Delhi. The bulk of Mr Modi’s losses are expected from Maharashtra and Bihar, he says. Maharashtra is where Modi ditched the Shiv Sena and split the former ally to form a state government with the BJP. Now Shiv Sena leader Udhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar, both members of the INDIA opposition alliance, are campaigning with doubled energy on the plank of defeating the ‘ghaddaars’, or traitors.


Would Modi accept defeat if it does come calling? Or would he take the Donald Trump route, instead?

With Thackeray’s Shiv Sena, the BJP secured 41 of 48 seats in Maharashtra in 2019. Without Thackeray, Yadav sees a loss of 20 seats at least. Bihar is where Chief Minister Nitish Kumar quit an alliance with Lalu Yadav’s party to go back for a third or fourth time to the BJP. Kumar is lampooned widely as ‘dal badloo’, a party hopper. The BJP and Kumar had 39 of 40 seats in Bihar last time. Yadav says they could lose 15.

Mr Modi’s tally could shed 10 in today’s Congress-ruled Karnataka where BJP had 26 of 28 seats in 2019. In West Bengal and the northeastern states, estimates Yadav, the BJP could be losing 10, which is at variance with Kishore’s reading. In Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand where the BJP held 69 jointly, it could lose 15. The BJP could gain five seats from the cluster of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Telangana, and 10 from Andhra where it has an alliance with a local party. All told, Modi and allies at current reading could land 268, four short of majority.

Let’s consider both scenarios, Modi winning or losing. Lending weight to Yadav’s estimates is Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, author of best-selling biography of Modi at the start of his Delhi sojourn. In an article last week, he said what could hurt Modi. “Reduced turnout, near absence of the famed cadre of the Sangh Parivar, lacklustre campaign of Modi, and the need to resort to … divisive and communally polarising spiel — all suggest the Modi script of 2024 has gone awry.” Despite Yadav’s headcount, if Modi does go on to win cleanly then he has won a third term. What if he loses?

According to Parakala Prabhakar, author of a best-selling Modi critique and husband of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the BJP could try to steal the elections. It has too many skeletons in the cupboard waiting to tumble out. Besides, 2025 is the centenary year of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. They wouldn’t want not to be in power to celebrate. Yet, analysts also claim it is the RSS that may be dragging its feet on handing a great victory to Mr Modi. The dice, says Prabhakar, is loaded and potentially spiked. “The regime has eliminated the role of the supreme court in the selection and appointment of the election commissioners. Whether the government-appointed election commissioners will do the regime’s bidding is a matter of speculation or suspicion.”

Mr Modi moved to freeze the bank accounts of the Congress party, crippling its putative challenger. He put two chief ministers in prison. But for the supreme court giving interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Modi regime had rendered the opposition’s onslaught that much weaker.

“There is every likelihood that the present dispensation would, therefore, try to do everything to steal this election. Unlike the earlier general elections, the present election is unlikely to conclude with the conclusion of polling on June 1 and declaration of results on June 4.”

The writer is Dawn’s correspondent in Delhi.
jawednaqvi@gmail.com

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2024

Indian elections

Modi’s anti-Muslim rhetoric is raising concerns of violence.

Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry 

DAWN

Published May 12, 2024 

THE Islamophobic rhetoric being employed by Narendra Modi for this election campaign has become shrill. Pakistan has nearly always been an electoral issue in India.

However, this time, it is Indian Muslims who are bearing the brunt of the Indian prime minister’s hate speech. Speaking in Rajasthan last month, he called Muslims “infiltrators” and said they produce too many children. In Gujarat, where, as chief minister, he had overseen the massacre of Muslims in 2002, he accused the Congress of seeking to “loot” India’s wealth and redistribute it among Muslims, and of organising a ‘vote jihad’ against his leadership. Later, he accused the Congress and Muslims of stealing Hindu wealth and property.

Modi’s inflammatory rhetoric was followed by the BJP’s campaign video portraying Muslims as outsiders who plundered India’s wealth. As concerns grew about communal violence, the video was removed. These allegations are a sequel to Modi’s public referencing of earlier conspiracy theories of ‘love jihad’ (Muslims forcibly converting Hindu women and marrying them to increase the Muslim population) or ‘land jihad’ (capturing land to construct religious structures and gaining control of India’s territory). Concerns that his rhetoric might incite further violence against Indian Muslims are increasing.

Ordinarily, since Hindus are in a majority in India, it may be difficult to question the rationale of creating a Hindu state. However, two observations are in order. One, the expansionist designs of the cherished Hindu state seek the creation of an Akhand Bharat, a Hindu right fantasy, which would violate the territorial integrity of Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, as per a map displayed in the new parliament building. This is not acceptable to the aforementioned independent states.

Two, though the creation of a Hindu state should not translate into discrimination against minorities, regrettably this will be the case. The works of French political scientist Christophe Jaffrelot illustrate how Muslims, 14.5 per cent of India’s population, are grossly underrepresented in bureaucracy, the judiciary, police, and legislative organs. They are second-class citizens.

The Muslim-majority area of Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmiri is also being subjected to demographic engineering. The destruction of the centuries-old Babri Masjid by Hindu zealots in 1992 and the construction of a temple in its place has set a precedent that might be followed for other historic mosques. This contrasts sharply with the UAE’s gesture of permitting a Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi.

Modi’s anti-Muslim rhetoric is raising concerns of violence.

Analysts are also pointing out the fascist tendencies of the BJP regime, a steep decline in democratic values, and a departure from the moorings of pluralism and secularism on which modern India was founded. In her book The Incarcerations, Alpa Shah contends that Modi’s India is using its national security apparatus to incarcerate ordinary citizens for their dissenting views. Commenting on the book, Arundhati Roy stated that this was about criminalisation and incarceration of dissent itself.

Strikingly, the Modi regime has also used art and culture to project the Hindutva philosophy. Kunal Purohit’s book H-Pop: The Secretive World of Hindutva Pop Stars shows how Hindutva pop stars and influencers are being used to spread the message of Hindu supremacy and create acceptance of Hindutva’s core beliefs.

Apart from this, Modi is playing on his government’s accomplishments: making India the world’s fifth largest economy; the construction of 50,000 kilometres of national highways; boosting India’s mi­­litary spending; bu­­ilding Vikrant, In­­dia’s first domes­ti­­cal­­ly built aircraft carrier; and the Chandrayaan-3 moon landing.

His prospects of winning a third term have been bolstered by a weak opposition. Despite the formation of the Congress-led 37-party INDIA coalition, there is no real challenge. What has bolstered his outreach is India’s enhanced global standing. In his book Why Bharat Matters, S. Jaishankar presents India as a leader of the global south and makes a case for the rejuvenation of India as a civilisational state.

There are some lessons that Pakistan could learn from India’s electoral process. One, despite the large scale of India’s elections (969 million registered voters; 1m polling stations) and the use of electronic voting machines, election results are largely accepted without much ado. Two, there is no caretaker government, as the incumbents become ‘caretakers’ in a way, and refrain from announcing major policy decisions or sanctioning expenditure for development schemes.

If Modi wins a third term, he is likely to maintain his pro-Hindutva, anti-Muslim, and hegemonic attitude towards regional countries, particularly Pakistan.

The write is a former foreign secretary and chairman of Sanober Institute Islamabad.

Published in Dawn, May 12th, 2024

Once a fringe Indian ideology, Hindu nationalism is now mainstream, thanks to Modi's decade in power

KRUTIKA PATHI and SHEIKH SAALIQ
Wed, April 17, 2024 


1 / 16
 Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sandalwood paste and vermilion applied on his forehead during the inauguration of Kashi Vishwanath Dham Corridor, a promenade that connects the Ganges River with the centuries-old temple dedicated to Hindu god Shiva in Varanasi, India, Dec. 13, 2021. Hindu nationalism, once a fringe ideology in India, is now mainstream. Nobody has done more to advance this cause than Modi, one of India’s most beloved and polarizing political leaders. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh, File)

AHMEDABAD, India (AP) — Hindu nationalism, once a fringe ideology in India, is now mainstream. Nobody has done more to advance this cause than Prime Minister Narendra Modi, one of India’s most beloved and polarizing political leaders.

And no entity has had more influence on his political philosophy and ambitions than a paramilitary, right-wing group founded nearly a century ago and known as the RSS.

“We never imagined that we would get power in such a way,” said Ambalal Koshti, 76, who says he first brought Modi into the political wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in the late 1960s in their home state, Gujarat.

Modi was a teenager. Like other young men — and even boys — who joined, he would learn to march in formation, fight, meditate and protect their Hindu homeland.

A few decades earlier, while Mahatma Gandhi preached Hindu-Muslim unity, the RSS advocated for transforming India — by force, if necessary — into a Hindu nation. (A former RSS worker would fire three bullets into Gandhi’s chest in 1948, killing him months after India gained independence.)

Modi's spiritual and political upbringing from the RSS is the driving force, experts say, in everything he's done as prime minister over the past 10 years, a period that has seen India become a global power and the world’s fifth-largest economy.

At the same time, his rule has seen brazen attacks against minorities — particularly Muslims — from hate speech to lynchings. India's democracy, critics say, is faltering as the press, political opponents and courts face growing threats. And Modi has increasingly blurred the line between religion and state.

At 73, Modi is campaigning for a third term in a general election, which starts Friday. He and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party are expected to win. He's challenged by a broad but divided alliance of regional parties.

Supporters and critics agree on one thing: Modi has achieved staying power by making Hindu nationalism acceptable — desirable, even — to a nation of 1.4 billion that for decades prided itself on pluralism and secularism. With that comes an immense vote bank: 80% of Indians are Hindu.

“He is 100% an ideological product of the RSS,"in said Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, who wrote a Modi biography. "He has delivered their goals.”

UNITING HINDUS

Between deep breaths under the night sky in western India a few weeks ago, a group of boys recited an RSS prayer in Sanskrit: “All Hindus are the children of Mother India ... we have taken a vow to be equals and a promise to save our religion.”

More than 65 years ago, Modi was one of them. Born in 1950 to a lower-caste family, his first exposure to the RSS was through shakhas — local units — that induct boys by combining religious education with self-defense skills and games.

By the 1970s, Modi was a full-time campaigner, canvassing neighborhoods on bicycle to raise RSS support.

“At that time, Hindus were scared to come together,” Koshti said. “We were trying to unite them.”

The RSS — formed in 1925, with the stated intent to strengthen the Hindu community — was hardly mainstream. It was tainted by links to Gandhi’s assassination and accused of stoking hatred against Muslims as periodic riots roiled India.

For the group, Indian civilization is inseparable from Hinduism, while critics say its philosophy is rooted in Hindu supremacy.

Today, the RSS has spawned a network of affiliated groups, from student and farmer unions to nonprofits and vigilante organizations often accused of violence. Their power — and legitimacy — ultimately comes from the BJP, which emerged from the RSS.

“Until Modi, the BJP had never won a majority on their own in India’s Parliament,” said Christophe Jaffrelot, an expert on Modi and the Hindu right. “For the RSS, it is unprecedented.”

SCALING HIS POLITICS

Modi got his first big political break in 2001, becoming chief minister of home state Gujarat. A few months in, anti-Muslim riots ripped through the region, killing at least 1,000 people.

There were suspicions that Modi quietly supported the riots, but he denied the allegations and India's top court absolved him over lack of evidence.

Instead of crushing his political career, the riots boosted it.

Modi doubled down on Hindu nationalism, Jaffrelot said, capitalizing on religious tensions for political gain. Gujarat’s reputation suffered from the riots, so he turned to big businesses to build factories, create jobs and spur development.

“This created a political economy — he built close relations with capitalists who in turn backed him,” Jaffrelot said.

Modi became increasingly authoritarian, Jaffrelot described, consolidating power over police and courts and bypassing the media to connect directly with voters.

The “Gujarat Model,” as Modi coined it, portended what he would do as a prime minister.

“He gave Hindu nationalism a populist flavor," Jaffrelot said. "Modi invented it in Gujarat, and today he has scaled it across the country.”

BIG PLANS

In June, Modi aims not just to win a third time — he’s set a target of receiving two-thirds of the vote. And he’s touted big plans.

“I'm working every moment to make India a developed nation by 2047,” Modi said at a rally. He also wants to abolish poverty and make the economy the world's third-largest.

If Modi wins, he’ll be the second Indian leader, after Jawaharlal Nehru, to retain power for a third term.

With approval ratings over 70%, Modi’s popularity has eclipsed that of his party. Supporters see him as a strongman leader, unafraid to take on India’s enemies, from Pakistan to the liberal elite. He’s backed by the rich, whose wealth has surged under him. For the poor, a slew of free programs, from food to housing, deflect the pain of high unemployment and inflation. Western leaders and companies line up to court him, turning to India as a counterweight against China.

He's meticulously built his reputation. In a nod to his Hinduism, he practices yoga in front of TV crews and the U.N., extols the virtues of a vegetarian diet, and preaches about reclaiming India's glory. He refers to himself in the third person.

P.K. Laheri, a former senior bureaucrat in Gujarat, said Modi “does not risk anything" when it comes to winning — he goes into the election thinking the party won't miss a single seat.

The common thread of Modi's rise, analysts say, is that his most consequential policies are ambitions of the RSS.

In 2019, his government revoked the special status of disputed Kashmir, the country’s only Muslim-majority region. His government passed a citizenship law excluding Muslim migrants. In January, Modi delivered on a longstanding demand from the RSS — and millions of Hindus — when he opened a temple on the site of a razed mosque.

The BJP has denied enacting discriminatory policies and says its work benefits all Indians.

Last week, the BJP said it would pass a common legal code for all Indians — another RSS desire — to replace religious personal laws. Muslim leaders and others oppose it.

But Modi's politics are appealing to those well beyond right-wing nationalists — the issues have resonated deeply with regular Hindus. Unlike those before him, Modi paints a picture of a rising India as a Hindu one.

Satish Ahlani, a school principal, said he'll vote for Modi. Today, Ahlani said, Gujarat is thriving — as is India.

“Wherever our name hadn’t reached, it is now there,” he said. “Being Hindu is our identity; that is why we want a Hindu country. ... For the progress of the country, Muslims will have to be with us. They should accept this and come along.”

___

Saaliq reported from New Delhi.

KASHMIR IS INDIA'S GAZA

Indian PM Modi visits disputed Kashmir for the first time in five years

Visiting the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley for the first time since 2019, Modi said that Kashmir's development was a priority for India as it sits like a crown in the country's north.



REUTERS

Schools were shut and exams postponed as thousands of government employees gathered for Modi's meeting. / Photo: Reuters

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made a historic visit to the disputed region of Kashmir, marking his first trip to the territory in five years.

The Muslim-majority region is administered by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small portion is also held by China.

The region has been a contentious point of contention for decades, with periodic escalations leading to military confrontations and diplomatic strains.

Thursday's visit comes against the backdrop of India's recent actions, such as the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, altering the special status of Kashmir.

The Himalayan region has been transformed and integrated with the rest of India, Modi has claimed, crediting the change to his government's contentious decision to revoke its special status.

Visiting the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley for the first time since 2019 — the year the status was revoked — Modi said that Kashmir's development was a priority for India as it sits like a crown in the country's north.

"This new Jammu-Kashmir has the courage to overcome any challenge," Modi told thousands of people attending a public meeting at a stadium in Srinagar, the region's summer capital, amid tight security.

"The country is seeing these smiling faces of yours ... (and) feeling relieved to see you all happy."

'Awaiting for decades'

Modi's visit to a region roiled for decades by violence comes weeks before general elections in which he will seek a rare third term.

Although his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is not a key player in Kashmir, the visit is seen as a signal to its voters that the party has fulfilled a core promise to end Kashmir's special status.

"This is the new Jammu and Kashmir we had been awaiting for decades," Modi added, listing achievements and investments made during the last five years.

Exams postponed for Modi's visit

Armed security personnel guarded downtown areas of Srinagar, commandos in boats patrolled its scenic Dal Lake, and the use of drones was banned. Schools were shut and exams postponed as thousands of government employees gathered for the meeting.

Modi has said Kashmir's special status allowed it a measure of administrative autonomy that held back its development and his government has unveiled several investment and infrastructure projects.

Kashmiri politicians who opposed revocation of special status criticised Modi's visit.

"This visit is only meant to ... drum up support amongst the BJP's core constituency in the rest of India for the upcoming parliament elections," Mehbooba Mufti, a former chief minister and former BJP ally, posted on social network X.

India PM Modi praises Kashmir transformation on first visit in 5 years

Online News EditorMarch 7, 2024

New Delhi, Mar 7 (EFE).- India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday that Kashmir has undergone a significant transformation and experienced freedom since the Indian government revoked its special semi-autonomous status five years ago.

Modi made the remarks during his first visit to the Indian-administered region since the contentious withdrawal of its semi-autonomous status nearly five years ago.

“This is the new Jammu Kashmir that we had been waiting for decades,” Modi said, addressing a packed stadium in Srinagar.

The Hindu nationalist leader said that the revocation has granted freedom and opened up “new opportunities” for the residents of Kashmir to pursue their “dreams.”

On Aug. 5, 2019, the Indian parliament abolished Article 370 of the constitution, which had granted semi-autonomous status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir, and allowed it to enact laws and have its own constitution, among other provisions.

The decision, bringing Kashmir under the direct administration of New Delhi, also resulted in unprecedented restrictions in the region, including an extended 18-month internet shutdown, to forestall protests and revolts.

Modi attended Thursday’s gathering under tight security measures, with security forces maintaining a vigilant presence around the stadium and nearby areas.

Over the past few days, thousands of armed police and paramilitary forces were deployed on the main roads of Srinagar, conducting door-to-door searches and random checks of pedestrians and vehicles across the region.

The city also underwent an intense facelift, adorned with thousands of posters and flags of Modi’s party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), displayed throughout the city.

Modi’s visit to the Muslim-majority region comes ahead of the Indian general elections, expected between April and May, where he is seeking a third consecutive term.

During the visit, schools were closed, and employees from at least 10 government departments were instructed to attend the prime minister’s rally, official sources told EFE.

Modi also inaugurated several projects worth $169 million to boost the Himalayan region’s tourism sector.

The picturesque territory has been a longstanding point of contention between India and Pakistan since their partition in 1947.

India has consistently accused Pakistan of supporting “terrorism” and insurgency in Kashmir, a charge Islamabad vehemently denies. EFE

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Indian PM Modi visits Kashmir for first time since special status revoked

Narendra Modi (L) during an exhibition ahead of the ‘Viksit Bharat Viksit Jammu Kashmir’ at the Bakshi stadium in Srinagar on Thursday. AFP

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday made his first official visit to Kashmir's main city since New Delhi stripped the region of semi-autonomy and took direct control of it in 2019.

Addressing a crowd in a soccer stadium in Srinagar, Modi announced development projects, and said previous governments had misled people over the region's now-scrapped special status.

"The success story of Jammu and Kashmir will be the center of attraction for the world," he said, saying that the region has prospered since the 2019 move. "I have always said that the hard work I am doing is to win your hearts. I will work towards winning your hearts further,” Modi told the crowd.

Modi and his party have accused Kashmir’s pro-India parties of being corrupt, misleading Kashmiris and promoting separatism in the region. Kashmiri politicians, who say their special status was a constitutional guarantee, have called Modi divisive and anti-minority.

Thousands of armed paramilitary troops and police in flak jackets maintained extra vigilance across the Kashmir Valley. Modi’s two previous visits to Kashmir after its status was changed were to the Hindu-dominated city of Jammu.

Modi did not mention plans to hold elections in the region or to restore its statehood, both demanded by Kashmir's pro-India political parties. The last election for the regional legislature were held in 2014, but the government elected then was dismissed in 2018.

In 2019, Modi’s Hindu-nationalist government revoked the region’s semi-autonomous status, annulled its separate constitution, split the area into two federal territories — Ladakh and Jammu-Kashmir — and removed inherited protections on land and jobs. The Muslim-majority region is now run by unelected government officials and bureaucrats.

India's powerful home minister, Amit Shah, has repeatedly promised that the region would be regain statehood after elections.

In December, India’s Supreme Court upheld the 2019 decision and asked the government to conduct state polls by September.

HEAVY SECURITY

Ahead of Modi’s visit to Srinagar, government forces laid razor wires and erected checkpoints on roads leading to the venue. They randomly frisked residents and searched vehicles, while navy commandos in motorboats patrolled the Jhelum River that snakes through the city.

Authorities ordered thousands of government employees, including teachers, to attend the meeting, and most schools in the city were closed for the day.

Thursday’s event is seen as part of Modi’s campaign ahead of national elections scheduled in April and May.

Kashmiri politicians who opposed revocation of special status criticised Modi's visit. "This visit is only meant to ... drum up support amongst the BJP's core constituency in the rest of India for the upcoming parliament elections," Mehbooba Mufti, a former chief minister and former BJP ally, posted on social network X.

Associated Press

 

EXPLAINER
India’s Modi visits Kashmir: How has the region changed since 2019?

Here’s a look at Narendra Modi’s government policies and how they have affected Kashmir since the region’s semi-autonomous status was taken away.

Published On 7 Mar 2024

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday made his first visit to Kashmir since his government’s controversial 2019 decision to scrap the region’s special semi-autonomous status.

Addressing a crowd at a football stadium in the region’s largest city, Srinagar, Modi claimed that the removal of Article 370, which granted a measure of autonomy to Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, had ushered in development and peace.

“I am working hard to win your hearts, and my attempt to keep winning your hearts will continue,” Modi said even as the region was placed under a security blanket, with thousands of soldiers and paramilitary forces deployed and new checkpoints set up.

The 2019 decision was hailed by the Hindu nationalist movement that Modi represents, but was met with anger in Kashmir – one of India’s only two Muslim-majority regions – which has seen a decades-long armed rebellion against Indian rule.

Since then, Modi has visited Hindu-majority Jammu region, but has stayed away from Kashmir, until now, on the eve of the 2024 national elections.

Modi and his government have claimed that the scrapping of Article 370, and their subsequent policies in Kashmir, have helped transform the region for the better.

Here’s a look at key changes brought to Kashmir by Modi’s government since 2019:

Special status under Article 370 removed

Article 370, which was enshrined in India’s constitution signifying Kashmir’s unique relationship with New Delhi, granted the Himalayan region a large measure of autonomy: Kashmir had its own constitution and flag, it could make its own laws in all matters except finance, defence, foreign affairs and communications.

Until 1965, the Indian-administered region had its own prime minister under whom property and domicile laws were passed to protect the interests and territorial rights of the region’s Indigenous people.

However, successive Indian governments watered down the autonomy, leaving the region, in some cases, with fewer powers than other states in India’s federal structure. The region had become heavily militarised after armed rebellion erupted in the late 1980s.

The 2019 revocation of Article 370 resulted in the loss of Kashmir’s flag, criminal code and constitutional guarantees. Several Indian states have laws in place to protect the tribal and Indigenous populations. Kashmir no longer does.

In December 2023, the Indian Supreme Court upheld the 2019 decision. Kashmir has been a major source of conflict between India and its neighbour, Pakistan, for more than 75 years. Both countries claim Kashmir in its entirety but govern only a portion of it.

Indian-administrated Kashmir bifurcated into two

Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated into two regions – Jammu and Kashmir in the west and Ladakh in the east. Neither region has statehood any more, as a consequence of the Modi government’s 2019 decisions.

Both are governed directly from New Delhi.

But people have expressed their grievances against their lack of democratic rights, with Ladakh too seeing frequent protests for more political rights and authority in local governance.

No elections for state legislature

The two new regions – Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh – have been without a state legislature since 2019. The last state elections were held in 2014 – the year Modi first came to power.

In December 2020, the first local elections took place to elect 280 members of District Development Councils (DDC) across Indian-administered Kashmir’s 20 districts. The DDC members, however, do not have the power to amend or introduce laws.

There have also been elections to fill seats in the village councils, also called panchayat, and municipal bodies, but they have very limited power, with the region ruled by New Delhi’s representative and bureaucrats.

India’s Supreme Court in December ordered the government to hold local elections by September 30, 2024.

Kashmir’s pro-India political parties have been demanding that elections be held in the region.

Modi and his government, however, have not indicated when they will hold the elections.

Clampdown on free speech

In the wake of the 2019 decision, New Delhi cracked down on rights activists and local politicians, imposed sweeping restrictions on free speech and shutting down the internet for months. Authorities used “antiterror” laws to arrest Kashmiri activists and journalists.

Human rights groups, including United Nations agencies, have criticised New Delhi for its rights violations in Kashmir.

On Friday, Kashmiri journalist Aasif Sultan was rearrested under an “antiterror” law days after his release from prison after five years. Sultan, the former editor of the now defunct Kashmir Narrator magazine, was arrested in 2018 for “harbouring militants”. His family has denied the allegations.

In November 2021, prominent Kashmiri activist, Khurram Parvez was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Kashmiri journalist Irfan Mehraj, who was previously associated with Parvez’s human rights organisation, was also arrested. UN experts and Amnesty International have condemned the arrest of Parvez and called for his release.

Journalist Fahad Shah, the editor of independent news portal Kashmir Walla, was released in November 2023 after more than 600 days of confinement under the “antiterror” law.

Journalist Sajad Gul was arrested in January 2022 under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA), which allows the detention of an individual without trial for six months.

A global report on internet censorship in 2022 found that Kashmir experienced more internet shutdowns and restrictions than any other region in the world.

Lack of protection for local communities

The Indian government also removed Article 35A of the Indian Constitution, which barred outsiders from permanently settling, buying land and holding local government jobs in the Muslim-majority region.

Other Indian states such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Odisha continue to safeguard the property rights of local residents, mostly tribal or Indigenous people.

Non-Kashmiris can now buy property in the region. This has prompted fears that the Modi government is trying to engineer a demographic shift in the Muslim-majority region.

These fears were further fuelled by a new domicile law for Indian citizens that the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs introduced in April 2020.

Under the domicile law, those who have lived in the Indian-administered region for 15 years, or have studied for seven years and appeared in secondary or high school-leaving examinations in educational institutions located in the region, are eligible to become permanent residents. Children of government officials who have served for 10 years in the region are also granted domicile status.

This law too has made Kashmiris fearful of permanent settlement by outsiders, including the family members of Indian security forces. Leaders from Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party have rejected that there are attempts to alter the demographics of the region.

Indigenous communities in Kashmir, and Ladakh are also affected by environmental damage and an influx of tourists. Kashmir’s Dal Lake is choked with sewage and its farmers suffer as a result of illegal river mining, and Ladakh is struggling to mitigate flooding and landslides.

Attempt at delimitation in Kashmir

The New Delhi-run local authorities have also redrawn assembly constituencies that many Kashmiris fear are aimed at the democratic marginalisation of Muslims.

A delimitation commission is assigning more legislative seats to the Hindu-majority Jammu region – where the BJP has wide support – than Kashmir Valley, despite the latter having a higher population. The total seats from Jammu region are expected to rise to 43 from 37, but only by one in Kashmir – to 47 from the existing 46, in effect changing the balance of power within the legislature.
Armed attacks continue in Indian-administered Kashmir

Modi’s ruling BJP government has said that Article 370 was abrogated to wipe out “terrorism” in the region and it has claimed that its policies have improved the security of the region.

However, armed attacks have continued in the region, causing deaths among civilians, security forces and rebels. Since 2021, attacks against Indian soldiers in districts like Rajouri and Poonch in the Jammu region have increased.

Ajai Sahni, the executive director of the Institute for Conflict Management in New Delhi told Al Jazeera in December 2023 that most of the recent killings of security forces took place in army-initiated operations. “I don’t believe that normalcy has returned after Article 370 abrogation,” said Sahni.

The South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) reported that the incidence of killing in the Indian-administered Kashmir went from 135 in 2019 to 140 in 2020 and further rose to 153 in 2021. While the number of incidents dropped to 72 in 2023, 33 security forces were killed in the year compared with 30 in 2022, where 151 incidents took place.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA

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HIGHLIGHTS
So two RBI governors in a row had serious issues with the easy ride corporates seemed to be getting under the Modi government. Both Patel and Rajan red flag serious issues, which have not been addressed by the government.

The common factor in case of both appears to be the overarching powers that Modi’s PMO has aggrandised.

Eventually the coronavirus will provide a huge alibi for the Modi government for its utterly underwhelming performance of steering the Indian economy.
Narendra Modi’s instinct to centralise all authority in the hands of his all-powerful Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has seen full fruition in his second term. Arguably, this is the most critical reason for the economy to tank post the Modi-made disaster that was demonetisation, which made 86.4 per cent of India’s currency vanish overnight.

The second hit was the awfulness of the babu excess that is the badly implemented Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Even more cause for alarm from a prime minister, who was famous for being corporate friendly as Gujarat chief minister is what Urjit Patel, former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, who famously and in an unprecedented move quit his post, has now revealed.

Patel, in his just released book - Overdraft: Saving the Indian Saver says the move to dilute the new bankruptcy laws caused disagreements between the Modi government and the Central Bank.


Patel, who headed the RBI between September 2016 and his sudden resignation in December 2018, says the government seemed to lose enthusiasm for the legislation in the middle of the year when he left the Central Bank.


The rift centered around an RBI circular issued in February 2018, which forced banks to immediately classify borrowers are defaulters when they delayed repayment; barred defaulting company founders from trying to buy back their firms during insolvency auctions; and push them into bankruptcy if a resolution timeline wasn’t met.


Patel, in a chapter, called the Empire Strikes back says: “Instead of buttressing and future proofing the gains an atmosphere to go easy on the pedal ensued.”


While Patel has refrained from naming names, the period he flags is when Piyush Goyal was temporarily handling finance. Goyal was clearly carrying out instructions from the powerful PMO as he is a lightweight politician utterly dependent on Modi’s political capital.



Patel was the second RBI governor who felt that he was unable to work with the Modi government. The first and more famous was Raghuram Rajan whose term as governor was not renewed by the Modi government.


Rajan hit a similar wall with the Modi PMO when he sent the Rajan list to the PMO to take action against “a list of high profile fraud cases of Non-Performing Assets for coordinated investigation” eight months into Modi’s first term.

Not only did the Modi government not act, it refused to make the list public. Some of the names allegedly flagged by Rajan managed to flee the country despite being on the Rajan list.


So two RBI governors in a row had serious issues with the easy ride corporates seemed to be getting under the Modi government. Both Patel and Rajan red flag serious issues, which have not been addressed by the government.


All-powerful PMO


The common factor in case of both appears to be the overarching powers that Modi’s PMO has aggrandised. It refused to order investigations in to the Rajan list and someone in the highest echelons of the Modi government did not want time bound action of threat insolvency against corporate debtors.


Modi, has famously after losing two RBI governors, said he preferred “hard work” to Harvard. What this attitude has seen is a talent bleed of huge proportions. Chief economic advisor Arvind Subramnium quit has chief economic advisor before the completion of his term in 2018. Viral Acharya, the RBI deputy governor, quit in June 2019 after he had angered the Modi government by questioning the transfer of RBI reserves to the government.


It all began with vocal Modi supporter Arvind Panagariya quitting the Niti Ayog in August 2017. The Ayog was the planning commission renamed by Modi.


Capital like stable rule of law and the “spectaculars” like demonetisation that Modi keeps coming up with periodically has made investors nervous. It does not help that Modi’s entire economic team look more like cheerleaders and less like economic managers.


The proliferation of Gujarat cadre IAS officials in the PMO who work the phones to all stake holders and seem to have a final say in policy making is also causing its own problems. Nobody seemed to believe Nirmala Sitharaman, another lightweight politician appointed as finance minister, and her stimulus packages before coronavirus broke out and it did nothing to stimulate demand and get confidence back. The much hailed Gujarat model is clearly having trouble going national.



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MODI IS A HINDU NATIONALIST
Dozens of US lawmakers urge Biden to raise rights issues with Modi -letter

Story by By Patricia Zengerle 

U.S. President Joe Biden holds videoconference with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the White House in Washington© Thomson Reuters

By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Dozens of his fellow Democrats urged U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday to raise human rights issues with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Washington this week, according to a letter sent to Biden.

Modi left for Washington on Tuesday for a visit projected as a milestone in ties between the two countries.

"We do not endorse any particular Indian leader or political party — that is the decision of the people of India — but we do stand in support of the important principles that should be a core part of American foreign policy," said the letter, led by Senator Chris Van Hollen and Representative Pramila Jayapal.

A total of 75 Democratic members of Congress - 18 senators and 57 members of the House of Representatives - signed the letter, sent to the White House on Tuesday and first reported by Reuters.

"And we ask that, during your meeting with Prime Minister Modi, you discuss the full range of issues important to a successful, strong, and long-term relationship between our two great countries," the letter said.

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Modi has been to the United States five times since becoming prime minister in 2014, but the trip will be his first with the full diplomatic status of a state visit, despite concerns over what is seen as a deteriorating human rights situation under his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party.

Washington hopes for closer ties with the world's largest democracy, which it sees as a counterweight to China, but rights advocates worry that geopolitics will overshadow human rights issues. Several U.S. rights groups plan protests during Modi's visit.

The State Department's annual report on human rights practices released in March listed "significant human rights issues" and abuses in India.

'FRIENDS CAN AND SHOULD DISCUSS THEIR DIFFERENCES'

Modi will address a joint meeting of the House and Senate on Thursday, one of the highest honors Washington affords to foreign dignitaries.

"A series of independent, credible reports reflect troubling signs in India toward the shrinking of political space, the rise of religious intolerance, the targeting of civil society organizations and journalists, and growing restrictions on press freedoms and internet access," the lawmakers said in the letter.

They said they joined Biden in welcoming Modi to the United States, and want a "close and warm relationship" between the people of the two countries, saying that friendship should be based on shared values and "friends can and should discuss their differences in an honest and forthright way."

"That is why we respectfully request that — in addition to the many areas of shared interests between India and the U.S. — you also raise directly with Prime Minister Modi areas of concern," the letter said.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday. But when asked last month about human rights concerns in India, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Biden believes: "This is an important relationship that we need to continue and build on as it relates to human rights."

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Don Durfee and Jonathan Oatis)

India’s Modi creates conundrum for US political leaders
Story by Laura Kelly •

 The Hill

Washington will welcome Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with open arms Thursday, highlighting a bipartisan effort to move past the many differences in the U.S.-India relationship and focus on their shared problem: China.

The Indian premier’s trip comes amid a push for defense and tech deals between the two countries, and as some lawmakers and human rights groups voice criticism of the trip, viewing Modi and his political party as responsible for violence in India directed toward the country’s Muslim minority.

Modi’s invitation to deliver an address to a joint session of Congress — which will be his second such speech — has raised alarm for activists and groups critical of his administration’s push toward silencing dissenters in India.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) tweeted that she will boycott the speech, and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) announced she’ll hold a press conference with human rights groups directly after the prime minister’s address. The lawmakers are the only two Muslim women elected to Congress.

The Biden administration has signaled it views the visit as an important step in strengthening U.S.-India ties, fanning worries among critics that the White House is willing to soften criticisms in exchange for advancing a powerful economic and military relationship.

“My hope is that this visit basically consecrates the U.S. and India relationship as the most important bilateral relationship for the United States on the global stage,” Kurt Campbell, the National Security Council coordinator for the Indo-Pacific said during an event with the Hudson Institute earlier this month.

“I think the president is less about outward and ostentatious proselytizing about democracy and human rights and more about trying to let our model and our attempt to deal with our own challenges be a kind of model for how other countries might want to deal with their own challenges,” he added.

India, a democracy with a population of more than 1.4 billion and a reputation as a hub for innovation, is a priority business market that the Biden administration feels can serve as an alternative to China.

Though the U.S. and India have different priorities when it comes to China — New Delhi is more concerned about Beijing’s military buildup on its border than an invasion of Taiwan — U.S. lawmakers see a strong partner.

“One senior Indian official — I asked him what India’s greatest challenges were, he said, ‘No. 1 was China, No. 2 was China, No. 3 was China,’” Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), co-chairman of the Senate India Caucus and chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, said on a panel discussion last week.

The scope and scale of economic and security deals that could come to fruition from Modi’s visit are being watched closely.

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“I want deals to go through,” Atul Keshap, president of the United States-India Business Council at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said in an interview with The Hill.

“The defense deals, the energy deals, the digital economy deals, the e-commerce, supply chain, manufacturing deals, semiconductor deals — business-to-business is part of the glue of this relationship. … Deal flow is critical for me, and I’m looking to see what the tally sheet shows after the State visit.”

One such priority agreement is the Biden administration’s signoff for General Electric to partner with Indian defense manufacturing to produce next-generation fighter jet engines, a lucrative deal that also requires the U.S. to share sensitive military technology.

The agreement is part of a larger trend wherein the U.S. has engaged India in critical security partnerships in a counter to China, such as the “Quad” grouping of the U.S., India, Australia and Japan, and the I2U2 — a separate alliance including Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

But while Washington and Delhi have shored up military partnerships and set the stage for deepening economic ties, human rights groups and lawmakers are raising alarm that the president is abandoning his promise to put respect for human rights at the center of his foreign policy.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), along with more than 70 of their colleagues, sent a letter to Biden on Tuesday urging him to raise with Modi the need to protect human rights and democratic values in India.

Groups have criticized the White House for rolling out the red carpet for Modi over weakening press freedoms and silencing dissenters in India and stressed the Biden administration is “whitewashing” his record.

“America knows and the world knows what Modi is, who Modi is, in fact, he was not even allowed to come to the United States for nine years until he became prime minister,” said Rasheed Ahmed, executive director of the Indian American Muslim Council, referring to the U.S. in 2005 banning Modi’s entry due to anti-Muslim violence that took place in Gujarat state when he was a governor.

“So it’s not that the U.S. administration does not know what he has done or what he is responsible for. But in spite of that, the Biden administration providing him this kind of platform is a real problem here,” he said, adding that military and strategic economic ties should not be a free pass for the Indian prime minister “to do whatever he wants to do.”

“If the Biden administration is interested in India as a strategic partner, as a bulwark for China, they need to make sure that it is first of all, it is stable, and second, it is a democracy,” Ahmed said.

There’s also the issue of New Delhi’s close ties with Moscow — a relationship that stretches back to the Soviet Union and has left Russia as a key arms supplier to India.

India has fiercely guarded its position of nonalignment and neutrality since the early days of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, despite pressure from the Biden administration to turn away from Moscow.

That tension could play out when India hosts the G20 summit in September, where Russian President Vladimir Putin faces few barriers in attendance. New Delhi is not a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and not obligated to act on an ICC arrest warrant against Putin for war crimes committed in Ukraine.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) called it “a little bit disappointing, when Russia invaded Ukraine, India took a pass,” but pointed to the need to wean New Delhi off of dependency on weapons from the Kremlin.

“They’re coming our way … and it can’t happen fast enough.”

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