Narendra Modi vs the Dynasty: Contrasting Ideas of India

[Pratyush]

What is the point of postin the above in this thread. Also who is this guy, who is to be given so much attention. Ignore him, and he will disappear. Engage him and you give him victory.

In other words don't feed the trolls.

[anishns]

Am being spammed by kaangress! Has anyone else received this?
I guess the mainowaadis are truly desperate

Have promptly reported this as spam

English Version
http://inc.in/connect/9/Truth-about-cor ... aignId=133


प्रिय मित्र,

आजकल कुछ राजनीतिक दल भ्रष्टाचार मिटाने के नाम पर आपका समर्थन मांग रहें हैं। भ्रष्टाचार के मामलों में सच जानना आपका अधिकार भी है और कर्तव्य भी। हमारा आग्रह इतना ही है कि राजनीतिक दलों के दावों और आरोपों की जांच अवश्य करें और सही फैसला लें।
कृप्या इन बिन्दुओं पर ध्यान दें और पूरी जांच करनें के बाद ही अपना वोट डालें।
जहां कांग्रेस 2005 में RTI कानून लाई, गुजरात में अमित जेठवा जैसे RTI कार्यकर्ताओं की हत्या कर दी जाती है, जिसमें भाजपा के नेताओं के नाम स्पष्ट रुप से शामिल हैं। Source
कांग्रेस लोकपाल बिल लाई जबकी गुजरात में 10 साल तक लोकायुक्त की नियुक्ति नहीं की गई। जब राज्यपाल ने लोकायुक्त को नियुक्ति किया तो राज्य सरकार ने इसको किसी भी तरह से रोकने के लिए मुक्द्दमें में 45 करोड़ खर्च किए। Source
Supreme Court ने गुजरात सरकार की मंत्री आनंदी बेन पटेल को एक जमीन आवंटन के मामले में दोषी पाया पर वो आज भी गुजरात सरकार में मंत्री बनी हुई हैं। Source
400 करोंड़ के मछली पालन घोटाले में कोर्ट द्वारा दोषी पाए गए पुरुषोत्तम सोलंकी गुजरात मंत्रीमंडल को आज भी सुशोभित कर रहे हैं। Source
जहां कांग्रेस ने दोषियों के खिलाफ कार्यवाही की, भ्रष्टाचार के मामले में जेल यात्रा कर चुके यदुरप्पा को भाजपा पार्टी में फिर शामिल किया। Source
कोयला आंवटन के मामले में हमेशा के लिए एक पारदर्शी नीति बनाने की नीयत से UPA सरकार नें Coal Blocks के निलामी (auction) का फैसला लिया था। CAG ने कहा है कि auction की नीति देर से लागू की गई, जिसके कारण ‘private parties’ को 1.86 lakh crore का फायदा हुआ था। ऐसा इसलिए हुआ क्योंकि राज्य सरकारों के दबाव के कारण भारत सरकार को 1993 की ही नीति को जबरन अपनाना पड़ा। ध्यान रहे कि इस नीति में भाजपा ने अपने 6.5 साल के शासनकाल में कोई बदलाव नहीं किया।
जब नीति पुरानी थी और एक भी खान में खनन नहीं हुआ तो देश को नुक्सान कैसे हुआ। Source
CBI उन मामलों की जांच कर रही है, जिसमें सरकारी विभाग के अधिकारियों ने procedures का पालन नहीं किया और कानून दोषियों को सजा देगा।
2G आवंटन मामलें में भी कहानी कुछ ऐसी ही है। इस मामलें के दो पहलू हैं, पहला सरकार की नीति क्या थी और दूसरा ए राजा ने किस तरह से इस नीति को लागू किया।
राजा के खिलाफ मामला कोर्ट में है और अगर कोई अपराध हुआ है तो उन्हे कड़ी से कड़ी सजा मिलेगी।
जहां तक नीति का सवाल है, यह वही नीति है जो NDA के समय से लागू है और इसका लक्ष्य यह है कि देश के लोग सस्ते दामों पर Mobile phone की सुविधा का लाभ उठा सकें।
CAG का आरोप है कि auction न करके हमने देश का नुक्सान किया है पर सरकार की नीति का मक्सद लोगों तक सस्ती मोबाइल सुविधा उपलब्ध करना था, न कि auction कर के राजस्व इक्ठ्ठा करना। UPA सरकार ने 3G सेवाओं को auction करके देश के लिए संसाधन जुटाए जबकि 2G सेवाओं का इस्तेमाल देश का गरीब से गरीब आदमी कर सकता है। जहां तक नीति का सवाल है, उससे देश के करोड़ों लोगों को आगे बढ़ने के अवसर मिलें हैं। Source
Common Wealth Games के आरोपी सुरेश कलमाड़ी को हमारी सरकार ने भारतीय ऑलंपिक संध के अध्यक्ष पद से हटाया और अब उनपर कोर्ट में मुक्द्दमा चल रहा है। वहीं जेल की यात्रा कर चुके श्री येदुरप्पा को भाजपा ने अपने मंच से सम्मानित किया, जबकि कांग्रेस ने सुरेश कलमाड़ी का टिकट काट दिया।
चुनाव के शोर में सच कई बार सुनाई नहीं देता खासकर जब शोर करने वाला झूठ बोलने में माहिर हो। हम आपको सच बतानें की कोशिश तो कर ही रहें हैं पर आपका भी फर्ज हैं कि आप अपने स्तर पर सच की जांच करें और सोच समझकर फैसला लें।

अगर आप इन तथ्यों से सहमत हैं तो कृप्या इसे अपने मित्रों से शेयर जरुर करें।

जय हिंद,
भारतीय राष्ट्रीय कांग्रेस

[member_22539]

^ translation please

[SanjayC]

Rohitv :

Ask this ass if I can kiss his wife for a few seconds against her wish.

[Arunkumar]

^^^A friend of mine on fb has MM in his friend list. The above comment was pasted in his timeline as well. Many woman expressed disgust and unfreinded him.
One thing i noticed on fb was many enterprueners like MM play from all sides. They post pro-congress, pro-modi, pro-AAP comments at the same time.

[archan]

Folks, some thread discipline please.

[RajeshA]

The Bharatiyata Thread would be ideal to discuss the issue of Persecution of Hindus in Pakistan and giving them refuge in India. My post there.

[rohitv]

^^^A friend of mine on fb has MM in his friend list. The above comment was pasted in his timeline as well. Many woman expressed disgust and unfreinded him.
One thing i noticed on fb was many enterprueners like MM play from all sides. They post pro-congress, pro-modi, pro-AAP comments at the same time.

yes even I remember MM being anti congress few months ago which automatically gave some pro-bjp slant in his posts. But now his posts are vrulently anti-modi and anti-bjp. And no he is not your typical troll. He has a huge following and his posts are shared widely.He posts long rants which seem like a "well argued piece" at first glance. Those who are too lazy to find the facts themselves can now blindly quote these posts either in an online discussion or there anti-modi/bjp stance gets reinforced. Though I feel that most of us have made our minds regarding whom to vote and there are very few fence-sitters still we need to counter blatant lies and disinformation.

[pradeepe]

Namo in a Taipei restaurant

[pankajs]

Madhu Kishwar ‏@madhukishwar 1h

Watch & hear Narendra Modi on NDTV's role during 2002 riots http://www.manushi.in/articles.php?arti ... 0PVbfmSwsc …

It was my endeavour that we restore peace at the earliest possible. If you look at the data you will see that in 72 hours we had put down the riots and brought the situation under control. But these TV channels kept on playing up the same incidents over and over again. At the time, Rajdeep and Barkha were in the same channel NDTV. During those inflamed days, Barkha acted in the most irresponsible manner. Surat had not witnessed any communal killings, barring a few small incidents of clashes. However the bazaars were closed [as a precautionary measure]. Barkha stood amidst closed shops screaming “This is Surat’s diamond market, but there is not a single police man here.”

I phoned Barkha and said, “Are you providing the address of this “unprotected” bazaar to the rioting mobs? Are you inviting them to come and create trouble there by announcing that there is no police here so you can run amok safely?”

In a second incident in Anjar, she played up the news that a Hanuman mandir had been broken and vandalized. I told her, “What are you up to? You are in Kutch which is a border district. There you are showing the attack and destruction of a mandir. Do you realize the implications of broadcasting such news? We haven’t yet recovered from the earthquake. Have you actually done proper investigation into the riots? Why are you lighting fires for us? Your news takes a few minutes to broadcast that such and such place is unprotected or a mandir has been vandalized. But it takes for me a few hours to move the police from one disturbed location to another since these incidents are breaking out in the most unexpected places.”

What is worse, when I got the matter enquired into by the local police, we found out that it was a small, insignificant structure under a tree which had been damaged a little bit by some crazy individual. But NDTV presented it as an attack on a Hanuman mandir. When the fires were raging these journalists were pouring fuel on those fires.

On that day I had put a ban on TV channels because they were actually provoking trouble. But it was only for one day.

Since Rajdeep Sardesai was among the leading reporters covering the disturbances, I phoned him to say, “I will have to put a temporary ban on your channel if you continue with the provocative coverage. There is a well-established regulation that media should not name communities during communal riots nor identify a damaged placed as a mandir or masjid. Why are you violating that code and well set protocol about not naming communities or identifying places, of worship? You are going against established norms.”

NDTV Role in Adding Fuel to the Fire During 2002 Riots

[member_28025]

Could we move to some other thread for discussion on animal welfare? This is not the right thread and I am sorry if I brought it up.

[KLP Dubey]

It is a pity that NRIs cannot vote.

Welcome (back). Just a small point, NRIs (Indian citizens outside India) definitely can vote, but they cannot vote 'in absentia'. You have to go to India and vote at your registered location.

[KLP Dubey]

It's official - the INC fields (Ganpat) Rai in Varanasi:

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/new ... 450331.cms

[Singha]

today Namo addressed rallies in Mysore and Kasargod.

he clearly said the rulers of kerala had converted north kerala into a terror nursery.

[Vikas]

Who is Mahesh Murthy and why his posts of FB are important for NaMo thread ?
Doesn't that prove that being Anti-Namo will fetch you publicity for free..

[KJo]

Modi in Mysore.

STAGE SET FOR MODI RALLY

The bullet-proof lectern at Maharaja’s College Ground where Narendra Modi will address the rally.

Mysore, Apr. 8 (RK&KMC)- Meticulous preparations were in place at the Maharaja College Ground in city, the venue of a public rally to be addres- sed by BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, hours ahead of the scheduled time of 4 pm today.

More than 2,000 Police personnel have been deployed at the venue since morning with Bomb Squad, Dog Squad, forensic experts and top Police officers led by City Police Commissioner Dr. M.A. Saleem constantly checking the venue and its surroundings.

An elevated platform measuring 40 ft x 20 ft has been erected with the lectern (orator’s desk) fitted with bullet-proof glass in the front where only the VVIPs will be allowed. This lectern has been provided by the City Police whereas for AICC President Sonia Gandhi’s rally tomorrow at the same venue, a lectern will be brought by Special Protection Group (SPG) from Delhi.

A vast area between the dais and galleries meant for public has been demarcated as Noman’s Land which will be left vacant till the VVIPs leave the venue.

Separate enclosures have been provided for the dignitaries, media, women and others with three Checking Points for women, to be manned by lady Police personnel.

More than 40 Door Frame Metal Detectors (DFMD) have been installed at the entrances of all enclosures and 10 large-screen LEDs have been installed for displaying Modi’s speech to viewers who may not be able to have a good view of the dais. More than 50,000 chairs have been provided in the enclosures.

The newly-prepared helipad at the University Football Ground has been sprinkled with enough water to make it dust-free. Modi, who is expected to land there at around 4 pm after his rallies in Kasargod and Bagalkot, will be taken in a car directly to the dais.

Commandos of the Chamundi Strike Force, Mounted Police, KSRP, CAR, Civil, Traffic, Women Police, Dog Squad, Bomb Detection Squad and Fingerprints experts have been deployed for the bandobust, leaving no stone unturned to ensure security.

Ambulance and Fire tending vehicles are in waiting and drinking water facilities have been provided all around the venue.

Frequent checks have been made by the Election Commission officers too.

[kancha]

Trolls are working overtime these days!

[Singha]

Namo was addressing his third rally of the day in electronic city blr.
my wife passing by bus recognized the hypnotic voice...big traffic jams.

[Hari Seldon]

Heh.

[gandharva]

[gandharva]

[KJo]

Why don't these Deobandi clowns push off to Pakistan where they are loved by their "brothers"?

And we have people here who think that some other Indians don't have an us vs them mentality.

[Victor]

Hopefully enough Muslims also want a change and have the brains to understand that if "the real face" is not to their liking, they can always vote against BJP in 5 years. We'll find out soon enough but one thing is sure--if they do, the fundoo g@ndoos will be out of business.

[prahaar]

I guess he means disastrous for Mullahs like himself. The police handling of cow-slaughter mischief in Gujarat is what scares such elements.

[pankajs]

New York Times World ‏@nytimesworld 27m

.@EllenBarryNYT's take on @narendramodi, a front-runner for prime minister of India. What kind of leader would he be? http://nyti.ms/1lNJNdW

[member_28468]

temporary image hosting


cant stop my self see 2nd image acrefully

[vivek.rao]

What is the truth behind Sonia Gandhi’s trips to the US?

Last year in September, a US court had reportedly served a summons to Congress President Sonia Gandhi in a human rights violation case related to the anti-Sikh riots of 1984.

The summons were served after a group called SFJ (Sikhs for Justice) filed a civil suit in a Brooklyn Federal Court alleging that Mrs Gandhi was guilty of shielding some Congress members who had played an active role in the 1984 riots.

The court sent the summons at a time when Sonia Gandhi was reported to be in the US to for a “routine medical checkup”. She had gone to the US after being briefly hospitalised at AIIMS, New Delhi. One may recall that she had felt some uneasiness and had to abruptly leave the Lok Sabha debate on the Food Security Bill — an event that was recounted many times by Rahul Gandhi in his election rallies. Unlike some of her other foreign trips, this particular trip was not a “secret”. There were media reports informing the public in advance that she indeed would be travelling abroad for medical reasons. Here is a Firstpost report based on a PTI copy, which quotes Congress general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi confirming Sonia’s trip to the US for six to eight days.

The only time any major news report relating to Sonia Gandhi was filed from the US was when this US court suddenly sent a summons to her. Here is a WSJ report that documents this development, and also reiterates that Sonia Gandhi was in the US for a medical checkup when the court issued the summons.

The WSJ report says that the responsibility for delivering the summons to Sonia Gandhi lay with the plaintiff, ie the SFJ. According to this report in The Hindu, which is based on a PTI copy, the SFJ did leave copies of the summons in the hospital in a rather “improper” manner, but the hospital staff never delivered them to Sonia Gandhi. So based on media reports, Sonia Gandhi was in the US but she never received the summons.

But here is the surprise element: Sonia Gandhi apparently claimed to the court that she did not receive the summons because she was not in the US from 2 September to 9 September 2013.

Why would Sonia Gandhi claim something that was different from what was told to the media by Dwivedi? The media reports clearly said that she was in US, even though she might not have received the summons.

Following this seemingly bizarre claim, the US court reportedly asked Sonia Gandhi to provide them her passport to prove her travel claims. And as per the latest reports, Sonia Gandhi has refused to provide the passport.

This veil of secrecy has to be ripped off. Where was she? Switzerland? Italy? London?

Around three years ago, India Today tried to get details of Sonia Gandhi’s foreign trips through an RTI, and no specific information was received.

Now her latest claims about her whereabouts last September make her international travels “mysterious” again.

What is the truth about her travels to the US?

[ramana]

I am living in Switzerland since 1981 and even in those days vegetables were available in abundance although not the variety we have in India. It was slightly more difficult to get vegetarian food in restaurants (except for pizza and pasta) but this is not the case anymore. Now most restaurants serve vegetarian stuff as well, so much so that even office canteens have one vegetarian dish on their menu. I have had no problems when travelling to Germany and Austria either. One has difficulty in finding vegetarian food in France, Spain and Portugal. In fact, whereas McDonalds and BurgerKing have a vegetarian burger in Switzerland, Germany and Austria, this is not the case for France. I am not sure about Spain and Portugal.

Not wanting to deviate from the topic, I am a die-hard supporter of Mr. Modi and believe he will bring to us a developed and vibrant India. I am an atheist but have no problem saying Har Har Modi, Ghar Ghar Modi. I have even managed to make my husband, an apolitical but religious person, to become a Modi fan by making him listen to his speeches and interviews. It is a pity that NRIs cannot vote.

Shamlee, Welcome to the forum. How did you find out about BRF and what prompted you to register? You are among the very few Shaktis to become BRF members. May you have a long stay. Pranams.

ramana

[VikramS]

MM's firm Pinstorm has the contract for social marketing for AAP
http://articles.economictimes.indiatime ... uexpress/2

[saumitra_j]

Sorry Saumitraji. I live in Geneva i.e. the Swiss French part and as such not knowledgeable about German. I understood the welcome bit but not the rest.

No worries, Bonjour et bienvenue! I was simply saying that I was there last year and I really appreciate the quality of life available to the common man there. Part of it is due to rogue money but a lot of it is due to sheer hard work, innovation and paying attention to details!

Of course the quality of life is great in Switzerland but despite being here for the last 33 years I don't consider it my country and therefore still holding on to my Indian passport. I don't see a point taking the nationality of a country that I don't feel loyal to.

That is a very wise step, our past, present and future lie in Bharat despite living in foreign lands! I really appreciate your decision.

For Modi to achieve the same standards for India that Switzerland has achieved is next to impossible, at least not in the next 20 years. Basically, we Indians need to change our mindsets to come close to Western countries. We blindly follow Western music and their clothes but not their discipline. One more thing that Indians need to learn is respect: towards human beings, animals and environment.

This is where Modi comes into play and will be hugely successful. You have to visit Gujarat to see the general level of confidence in the common people, especially the younger crowds to see what Modi has done in a decade there. Problems are there no doubt, but he has created the confidence in the people to face the problems and solve them. His visions of tourism are very forward looking - just imagine, if India builds half the infrastructure of Swiss tourism, what it will do in terms of economy, jobs and hence the quality of life! I am pretty optimistic that a decade of Modi and we will have the quality of life of a Spain at least, if not Switzerland!

[Gus]

reg the hindu asylum thing - even mid level bjp functionaries are not good in explaining this. it is very simple.

take the case of hindus being persecuted, girls abducted and forcefully converted etc in pakistan - where will that pakistani hindu go? obviously india.

paki shias are getting persecuted too, but they have iran. paki christians have several powerful churches in america, scandinavian countries etc to request asylum.

in a tv show, the question was - why discriminated between asylum seekers and if a SL tamil christian would be denies asylum because of his religion. that is just absurd. the manifesto clearly says "religious persecution". SL is primarily an ethnic conflict. BD infiltration is primarily an economic conflict.

[Prem Kumar]

Isn't that enough legal reason to strip his organization of tax-exempt status (for a religious group to be publicly canvasing votes for/against someone)?

[Vayutuvan]

I am living in Switzerland since 1981 and even in those days vegetables were available in abundance although not the variety we have in India.

Thanks for the update. Around that time there used to be just one restaurant I knew of in Zurich that served Indian buffet for dinner. Also a Hare Krishna cafe. We can go to another thread - may be food and wine thread?

[member_28502]

I feel this is the right time to track and see which News Media, print tweet TV is reporting the facts if not the truth and hence the credibility integrity with regard to NEWS coverage.

[Mahendra]

Barkha Jitne bhi kar lo dushth vichaar
Abki baar Modi Sarkar

[Prem]

Madhu Kishwar ‏@madhukishwar 1h

Watch & hear Narendra Modi on NDTV's role during 2002 riots Barkha stood amidst closed shops screaming “This is Surat’s diamond market, but there is not a single police man here.”I phoned Barkha and said, “Are you providing the address of this “unprotected” bazaar to the rioting mobs? Are you inviting them to come and create trouble there by announcing that there is no police here so you can run amok safely?”[/b]

How many recall Burka Dutt did the same in Kargil War and gave the soldiers's position away. Some in the Army blamed her broadcast for their colleagues death.

[Yayavar]

^^and the telecast during the Mumbai attack

[Mahendra]

Hmmm, same behaviour three times

[vivek.rao]

Is stopping Modi the West's new priority?

'The West has always preferred a timid, half intelligent and a dependent India rather than a decisively independent and self-reliant one. A pliable Indian leadership suits the West best,' says Tarun Vijay.

On the eve of India's polls, it looks like the West has accepted the widespread Indian mood for change, but still wishes it has to deal with someone else but Narendra Modi.

The Economist magazine brazenly displaying a Western arrogance bordering on a coloured vision, suggests in its latest issue: 'If, more probably, victory goes to the Bharatiya Janata Party, its coalition partners should hold out for a prime minister other than Modi.'

The old colonial psyche that described us as heathens and pagans to be civilised through a hard dose of the gospel, still survives, it seems, in the editorial offices of some Western newspapers and magazines.

When the economy is down and the corruption is high, a nation needs a leader with clear majority and a massive mandate to take firm, hard decisions. It must make Western governments, dwindling under their own 'not so good economic conditions', happier and more assured.

Instead of bowing before the people's mandate and looking at an emerging, stronger democratic India as a guarantee for regional peace and power balance, the Western media and some hardcore Christian lobby groups in the United States have started their last ditch effort to stop Modi.

The West has always preferred to have a timid, half intelligent and a dependent India rather than a decisively independent and self-reliant one.

No matter whether the Congress was in power or the BJP. The Western preferences have been very clear: A pliable Indian leadership suits them best.

Modi belongs to an entirely different world they do not know how to connect with. Having developed a habit of reporting India with the help of so-called liberal, Left of Centre, Anglophile scholars, commentators and gossip providers in an English club ambience, the Western media and their highly accented Indian correspondents find it difficult to comprehend the new phenomenon.

They have never read anything first hand source material on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh except the extreme Left's hate literature; their understanding of the Modi factor is limited to briefings by frequent fliers to Cambridge and the pre-opinionated India International Centre crowd.

Modi is a son of the soil. He speaks English with an Indian accent, and not an Oxbridge one, which had been so familiar to the Western media, crowding and appreciating the Westernised neo-Nehru clan.

The fear is the colonial continuity of the supremacy of the Anglophile may end with the rise of Modi.

When India gained nuclear power under Vajpayee's Pokaran-II test, the West was first to frown upon us, isolate us from the mainstream and impose harsh sanctions against India.

In spite of that, India-US relations have remained a pillar of India's foreign policy. The presence of nearly four million professionals of Indian origin people in the US and the recognition of their contribution by the Barack Obama regime is a testimony to the strong bonds that exist between us. Obama's rise delighted common Indians as much as it brought a feeling of justice in Washington.

A future Indian government will have to move ahead without any historical baggage of rancour or animosity and hence it is important to know if the West is hearing or is willing to appreciate the new music of a happy dawn on the Indian horizon.

It is not just trade and industry, the strategic partnership of India, Japan and the US is more significant in the contemporary geo-political situation.

The Economist and other voices of Modi-fear emanating from the influential US media can't have come at a more inappropriate time.

In Washington, Capitol Hill tried to give some signals of a changed mood, though delayed. The US ambassador to India, Nancy Powell, has resigned, fueling speculation that perhaps a more acceptable face would be sent to Delhi as a new envoy. But Congressional noises right at the time of elections in India have exposed the real faces of some US politicians against the rise of a new Indian leadership.

On April 4, the US Senate's Human Rights Commission had an unusually timed hearing on religious freedom in India that was meant just to criticise Modi and suggest, quite shockingly, strengthening of religious minority courts.

The timing of such an outrageous hearing alarmed some Hindu groups and Representatives. US Congresspersons Tulsi Gabbard and Brad Sherman raised serious concerns about the timing of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hearing on religious freedom in India.

India's rise is an unstoppable fact that the West also accepts it. It will be a tragedy if the largest democracy, so deeply appreciative and in harmony with Western democratic values, feels compelled to look the other way.

[Prem]

India’s Narendra Modi should build on his successes, not his prejudicial rhetoric
By Iditorial Board, ( Dont Understand Modi as elected leader Have and will carry much more Moral authority than any other leader in Democratic world)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/ ... story.html

THE WORLD’S biggest democratic election began Monday. The result, for better or worse, is easy to foresee. Polls show India’s Bharatiya Janata Party and its leader, Narendra Modi , beating the ruling Congress Party by as much as 3 to 1 among the more than 800 million people eligible to cast ballots over the next five weeks. The charismatic and hard-charging Mr. Modi promises big change for India, which for the past decade has drifted under the ineffectual Congress government of Manmohan Singh. India and the outside world can only hope that the country’s new administration will reflect Mr. Modi’s considerable strong qualities more than his equally outstanding failings.The promise of Mr. Modi, and the reason for his wide lead in the polls, is clear: a tough, practical and corruption-free record of economic management. As chief minister of Gujarat state, Mr. Modi has overseen growth averaging 10 percent a year over the past decade, significantly higher than for the country as a whole. His success rests on smart investments in infrastructure, business-friendly policies and openness to foreign capital.Just the prospect that Mr. Modi would take charge of the central government has sent the Indian stock market and rupee soaring and prompted a wave of foreign investment. The country unquestionably needs the medicine he seems to offer. Growth has recently slowed to 5 percent , too little to soak up the growth in the labor force, and much of the malaise can be traced to the troubles Mr. Modi has shown he can tackle, at least on a much smaller scale: energy bottlenecks, excessive regulation and choking corruption.
Mr. Modi, however, may be as repellent to India’s Muslims and secular liberals as he is attractive to the business community. A lifelong member of a quasi-martial Hindu nationalist movement, he is reviled by human rights groups for his behavior during and after anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat in 2002, in which more than 1,000 people died. Critics say Mr. Modi at best did nothing to stop the violence, then exploited anti-Muslim feeling in an election campaign. In 2005 this record prompted the State Department to deny him a U.S. visa.Mr. Modi has abandoned anti-Muslim rhetoric — “My real thought is toilets first, temples later,” he said in one campaign speech — but he has not apologized for or even explained his actions in the 2002 riots. He has a record of hostility toward journalists and their questions and rarely grants interviews. Worse, he has cultivated an autocratic style in government and, as head of the BJP, systematically purging critics and potential rivals.At worst, a Modi government could erode India’s robust democracy and exacerbate religious tensions that in recent years have abated. But India’s political culture is resilient and resistent to such extremism. Though critics had similar worries when the BJP’s first government took office in 1998, they were mostly not borne out. The Obama administration, which in February broke its freeze-out of Mr. Modi, is right to bet that he will follow through on his promise to build the economy rather than picking sectarian fights.