CSDS-Lokniti 2024 pre-poll survey | Development for whom?
The HinduDevelopment has consistently figured as a major consideration for Indians while deciding whom to vote in Lok Sabha elections. In that election, which saw the latter returning to power after a decade, 30% of voters felt that Narendra Modi would be better for the country’s development. Close to two in 10 voters are of the view that in the last five years, no development has taken place in the country. This sentiment has persisted among a similar proportion of voters since 2004, our pre-poll survey has found that 32% of voters think that, in the last five years, development has taken place only for the rich. It is interesting to recall that when the BJP was in power under Atal Bihari Vajpayee, an even larger percentage of voters expressed the sentiment that the development initiatives primarily benefitted the wealthy.