Sanjay Kumar’s column – Nationalism and Hindutva have now become central issues in the elections. Sanjay Kumar’s column: Nationalism and Hindutva are now the central issue in the elections. Achi-News

Sanjay Kumar, professor and political commentator

A recent pre-poll survey of 10,000 voters across 18 states by CSDS’s Lokniti Program shows that when elections knock on the door, there are signs of voter unease. But this is not enough to spoil BJP’s electoral math for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

It is true that the target of 370 seats still seems like a distant dream, but despite the unrest seen among the voters, BJP is in a strong position for the elections. Issues like unemployment and rising inflation are in place, but the government has other achievements that people give credit to.

What voters consider to be the government’s achievements determines their voting patterns to a large extent. The BJP seems to be ahead of its rivals on the issue of leadership. Narendra Modi is way ahead of other party leaders in popularity rating. It is felt that today along with the question of leadership, issues of nationalism, national pride and Hindutva have the greatest influence on the voting decisions.

The survey findings clearly show voters’ concern about rising unemployment. Around 62% of voters believe that finding a job has become more difficult now than before. People from villages, towns, cities all experience this.

A large number of people are also feeling the pressure of rising prices. Around 55% stated that prices had increased in the last five years, while another 19% believed they had decreased. In varying proportions, inflation affects the rich and the poor. The situation in terms of unemployment and inflation has not changed over recent years and concerns relating to these have continued for years.

But what works in the BJP’s favor is the government’s record on development. A large number of people have supported him. The repeal of Article 370 is seen as an important step by the government, with 50% of voters supporting it to varying degrees. Only 8% have expressed opposition to this issue.

A large number of Indians (37%) are aware of the G-20 summit and the majority of them consider it a positive achievement by the government. 30 percent of the people surveyed believed that the G-20 shows India’s growing power in the world, while another 39.5 percent believed that the G-20 would strengthen India’s foreign policy and foreign trade. 12 percent of people criticized G-20 calling it a waste of money.

The findings of the survey also indicated huge support among the people for the government’s stance towards the Uniform Civil Code in India. Here we have not even talked about the support the government gets for its Hindutva agenda, which includes support for the construction of Ram Temple and the assertion of Hindu identity in various forms.

The survey indicates huge support among Indians on these issues, which will benefit the BJP. These achievements do not bring concrete and material benefits to the people, but they give them a sense of national pride, which outweighs the concerns of unemployment and inflation.

Do not forget that the point where BJP has a decisive advantage over Congress or other opposition parties (Indian alliance) before the elections is the image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as an honest and strong leader. People believe that Modi has not only run a government with a clean image, but has also strengthened India’s image in the world.

There is hardly any leader among the opposition parties who can match the popularity of Narendra Modi. Modi has launched a direct attack on the opposition on the issue of corruption, which appeals to a large number of Indian voters.

In response to this, India’s alliance allies are also accusing Modi of being involved in corruption and raising the issue of BJP getting a lot of money through electoral bonds, but this does not seem to have any effect on image the Prime Minister. Yes, BJP’s image as a party is definitely being questioned by the voters.

The pre-election survey of CSDS-Lokniti concludes that the party’s image is not the factor that attracts large scale votes to the Bharatiya Janata Party today, but its top leadership ie the Modi factor.

(This is the author’s own opinion.)