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Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi raises the shrillness of his attack on Rahul Gandhi, aligning with a new phase of BJP’s identity politics, he is doing the Gandhi scion a great favour. Modi, on his part, seems to have settled the issue of the prime ministerial face of the opposition INDIA bloc in favour of Rahul.

Narendra Modi expressing joy and taking jibe at Rahul Gandhi’s candidature from Rae Bareli shows that the man is blinded by political arrogance and overconfidence. His remark “Daro mat, bhago mat”, implying that Rahul left the Amethi seat out of fear, is simply empty electoral rhetoric wrapped in perception of joyous misreading of the moment.

BJP is finding itself in a very tough electoral battle in the third phase of Lok Sabha election in Uttar Pradesh for which election campaign will end on May 5. It is surprising that despite high pitch communal campaign by BJP leadership, including the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, common people are just brushing them aside as merely election rhetoric. They don’t believe PM Modi’s accusation that Congress and INDIA block would give reservation quota’s of Dalits, STs, and OBCs and wealth of the Hindu’s to Muslim, if they would come to power. People are taking it like a pinch of salt.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s move to shift battleground from Amethi to Raebareli is a King’s defence. Chess great Garry Kasparov, however, didn’t seem to agree. He cracked his "little joke" on the Gandhi family scion even while stating that Indian politics shouldn’t take his "advocacy or expertise" seriously. Garry Kasporav, like so many others who walk upright, appeared surprised that Gandhi had it in him to think strategically.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Left parties are made of sterner stuff. Their leaders, MPs and MLAs are not up for grabs unlike the Congress party which succumbs to threats, intimidations and blandishments from the saffron camp at the drop of a hat as it were.

Modi ki Guarantee—Ram Lalla Darshan Yojana. The promise, displayed on large hoardings, is what welcomes you to Raipur as you exit airport. Even those who live in the hinterlands of Chattisgarh have been assured of a darshan at the Ram temple in Ayodhya if Prime Minister Narendra Modi becomes the Prime Minister for the third time after the Lok Sabha polls.

India has witnessed rising tide of religious bigotry and worsening prejudices against minorities since 2014. Ascendency of the Hindutva outfits has posed existential threats to secularism (religious neutrality), democracy and diversity. Attacks on Christians jumped from 147 in 2014 to 687 in December 2023.

Regular workers’ real wages have been declining by one per cent every year under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s regime. However, BJP’s election manifesto and Modi’s guarantees have left this issue untouched, and used the word “wages” only twice, while giving the guarantee of periodic review of national floor wages. There is no guarantee of protection from declining real wages.

The obnoxious speech of Narendra Modi on April 21 at Banswara, Rajasthan was notable for its vicious attack on Muslims and demonising any redistribution policy as a handing over of the gold and property of Hindus to the “infiltrators”. The bigotry displayed in this speech has understandably attracted widespread condemnation. But there is another aspect of the speech that exposes the extreme rightwing view of Modi and the BJP which results in the visceral hatred for any proposal for redistribution of wealth and incomes to tackle the high degree of inequality that exists in India.

In Modi’s India there are no pocket-boroughs, says BJP's diehard cadre. Except Wayanad in Kerala, which is ‘Rahul Gandhi’s pocket-borough’. Not Amethi, which Rahul gave up to Smriti Irani in 2019 and doesn't want anymore. A couple of months ago, Sonia Gandhi fled Gandhi family pocket-borough Raebareli, which will now send Rahul Gandhi to the Lok Sabha, another among a string of Nehru-Gandhi MPs elected from the constituency. Wayanad or Raebareli, which one will be Rahul Gandhi’s pocket-borough?