Narendra Modi: The third coming
India TodayWhat leaders propose, the gods of democracy, the voters, dispose in their own way. Modi captured the zeitgeist when he began his evocative address by saying, “Our Ram Lalla will no longer be living in a tent, he will now reside in his divine mandir.” The material culmination of a century-old struggle to build the mandir and the deep emotional valence it held for India’s Hindu majority was considered a game-changer for the Lok Sabha polls. Modi did make history as prime minister for an incredible third consecutive term but the fact that the INDIA bloc had considerably diminished the BJP’s dominance robbed the occasion of its sheen. Employing a carrot-and-threat policy, Modi neutralised the regime change in Maldives which was swinging decisively towards China after President Mohamed Muizzu won the election on an ‘India Out’ campaign. Meanwhile, with two big international wars—Russia and Ukraine in Europe and Israel-Hamas in the Middle East—continuing to afflict 2024, Modi trod a fine line to secure India’s national interests even as he upheld international principles of territorial sovereignty and pushed for “a path of peace through dialogue”.