The 2019 mandate was interpreted through the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as an endorsement of the long-held ideological beliefs. Additionally, it had the political confidence and legislative might to continue changes which it had long sought.
The BJP-led government began by leading the passage of the came into existence typically called the Triple Talaq Bill – criminalising instant triple talaq. This, the federal government claimed, had been a step towards gender justice. Critics, however, saw it as a a step meant to alienate minorities and potentially victimise Muslim men.
On August 5, government entities, within a surprise move, pushed through legislative changes on Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). This effectively nullified Article 370, taking off the special status their state had enjoyed thus far. Furthermore, it reorganised the state, carving it into two distinct units of J&K and Ladakh. These products were also deemed to get union territories. The us government claimed these measures would cause the greater integration of the region with the remainder of India, help citizens in the area take advantage of the same rights as citizens elsewhere, and defeat separatism and terrorism. Critics, however, pointed to the point that the move was not together with consultations with the leaders and folks of J&K; it absolutely was implemented with draconian measures including large-scale detentions; and could potentially bring about more alienation.
The government then pushed with the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in Parliament. This was targeted at fast-tracking the grant of Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities – Jains, Jews, Parsis, Hindus, Sikhs and Christians – from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. Government entities argued this became a humanitarian gesture. Opposition parties claimed that the lack of Muslims through the list of communities qualified to receive citizenship was discriminatory and unconstitutional. Additionally, they linked this having a possible National Register of Citizens (NRC) being a step supposed to disenfranchise Muslims; the federal government clarified that NRC had not been in the agenda along with the move had nothing concerning Indian Muslims.
There is one other significant milestone – which aligned using the BJP’s long-held agenda but where the government was without a part. The Supreme Court, inside a landmark verdict within the Ram Janmabhoomi case, while holding the destruction in the Babri Masjid in 1992 as illegal, awarded the disputed land in Ayodhya towards the Hindu parties. It has enabled the making of the Ram Temple with the disputed site.
Even as the season was marked by ideological triumphs for your BJP, its record in the electoral front was mixed, with a lot more setbacks than successes.
Inside the first pair of state elections after the Lok Sabha polls, Maharashtra threw up a hung assembly – BJP was the only largest party, and together with Shiv Sena, it possessed a majority. Nevertheless the Sena demanded rotational chief ministership. When the BJP refused to relent, Sena aligned with the Congress and also the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). The BJP sought to wean away NCP leader Ajit Pawar, but the ploy failed. Uddhav Thackeray (below) took over as CM and BJP lost one among India’s most essential states.
In Haryana, the BJP retained power – but it really lost its majority, along with to ally with Dushyant Chautala. In Jharkhand, within a subsequent election, the BJP lost ability to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-Congress combine. And in Delhi, earlier this coming year, despite a high-voltage campaign, in which several BJP leaders were charged with hate speech, the Aam Aadmi Party won a resounding mandate for your second time consecutively, bringing Arvind Kejriwal to power.
This established a brand new trend in Indian politics – of voters carefully distinguishing between national state and polls polls, national leaders and state leaders, and national issues and state issues. Anecdotes from the surveys and ground suggested that PM Modi remained the most popular national leader, but this was not enough to offset local disadvantages the BJP had.
The party also confronted another political challenge – such as a proliferation of protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act plus a possible National Register of Citizens. Also included others opposed to the government, although the protests were led largely by Muslims. Whilst the BJP’s support base rallied behind government entities, everyone opposition raised questions on social harmony, and generated international criticism.
Even as government entities scored ideologically and, despite setbacks, continued to remain dominant nationally, the big challenge for it remained the economy.
As figures made public on Friday show, growth in 2019-2020 slipped to 4.2% – from 6.1% in the preceding year. For that third year in a row, growth decelerated. An official National Statistical Organisation report, released just last year, revealed that unemployed had increased in 2017-18 to a 45-year high. According to another report, which was leaked and subsequently not published, real consumption levels dipped between 2011-12 and 2017-18. All of this presented a grim picture.
Growth was slowing, unemployment was rising, demand was plummeting. Additionally, the total amount sheet crisis extended to non-banking financial companies.
The us government made a decision to address this situation primarily through supply-side mechanisms.
The largest measure announced is in September this past year, when corporate taxes were reduced. The us government also unveiled a ? 100 lakh crore infrastructure plan for the following 5 years. However, these measures were insufficient to instil questions and confidence about if the Indian economic story would revive continued to get asked.
The coronavirus challenge
And then the pandemic came home.
Modern India has rarely faced challenging as grave since the coronavirus disease pandemic. PM Modi first announced a one-day people’s curfew and then a three-week national lockdown, as the disease travelled to cases and India increased. Government entities was given credit for not underplaying the threat and taking decisive action – additionally it started in for criticism because of not planning the lockdown well.
During the last 70 days, government entities has already established to confront serious health infrastructure deficits – even while cases have continued to rise. An economy that has been already slowing is now staring at an outright recession. Joblessness has grown, demand has dipped further, manufacturing has shrunk, sectors such as aviation and hospitality have borne huge losses, services happen to be disrupted, supply chains have broken down.Alongside, government entities has had to confront a significant humanitarian crisis, with migrant workers, in millions, returning home for their villages in desperation.
PM Modi’s 1st year was laced with challenges and successes. But the rest of his term, and perhaps, even his legacy, will he based on how his government helps India cope with the pandemic – which can be set to redefine politics, the economy, and everyday living.
