India Hindu nationalist BJP concedes election defeat

[muriel_volestrangler]

Source: Reuters

India's Hindu nationalist opposition Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance said on Saturday the ruling Congress party-led alliance had the biggest mandate after a general election.

"The Congress has the biggest mandate," said senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley.

"I think if Congress wants to compliment some of its leaders in this hour of victory, I think they're entitled to do so."

The Congress-led alliance was projected to get about 250 seats of a total 543 parliamentary seats.

Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idINDEL00003120090516

---

BBC results page here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/8051847.stm

[Prune Belly]

1. That's a relief, isn't it?

I'm not crazy about the Congress Party, but the BJP are some scary motherfuckers. Their constant Muslim-baiting, and lately Christian-baiting, has always worried the hell out of me.

edit: I should add, in the past the minority-baiting has not always stopped at mere baiting but developed into all-out pogroms. India's secularism, however superficial it may be, is something worth preserving, and the BJP openly threatens to destroy it and replace it with something truly monstrous.

Here is something worth reading: Neoliberalism and Hindutva - Fascism, Free Markets and the Restructuring of Indian Capitalism

[InfiniteThoughts]

2. That's MSM bullshit ...

Don't believe what the MSM feeds you. BJP is a central-right party while the Congress is the Central-left party. We can have a detailed debate about this topic if you wish for, but the main reason why the Congress party came to power is not because they defeated the BJP but they defeated the Communist parties, the radical left wing parties.

On the BJP and the issue of minorities, you need to understand the Indian landscape before making generic comments. India over the last 60+ years of it's independence has abused its majority and pampered the minority community. What takes the cake is the fact that Christians and Muslims ruled India for the last 1000 years and still they require affirmative programs; freedom to destroy hindu temples and construct mosques & churches nearby large hindu pilgrimage sites and that's why BJP receives votes from some sections of the Hindu community (not all though). Another complexity is the fact that Congress & some of it's allies in the past encouraged casteism and today the voting is strictly on caste lines in rural India. It is funny (no, tragic!) to see parties like the Congress calling itself secular (and the BJP, communal) while following policies encouraging casteism.

This picture will never be presented to the global community as it will shame the majority of Indian politician and hence they take the easy route.

PS: The BJP does have radical elements, the same way Congress has radical elements. In no way am i condoning the acts of these jokers.

[David__77]

3. That's right-wing bullshit.

BJP is a fascist, racist, theocratic party, linked to terrorist groups. Congress is not free of casteism, true. That's why I would support CPI(M) or CPI(ML). There's a reason that there's a popular war being waged right now.

[nyy1998]

4. While I could see why the Third Way would be

attractive to some foriegn-minded DUers. Having Mayawati as Prime minister would be absolutely horrendous. She would basically undo any progress India has made in the last 20 years. As a frequent traveler to India(to visit family), I would not travel to India at all if she became PM. Thank god Congress won.

[friedgreentomatoes]

5. make that "62" years. n/t

[InfiniteThoughts]

7. yipee ...

i was dreading that the smaller parties and fragmented seats would have lead a regional leader to claim the PM post (does anyone remember Gowda?)

2009 might be a watershed election where the electorate has decided to turn back on regional parties and elect national parties for Lok Sabha.

Though i am anti-Congress, i rejoice that we will be sparred of a lot of melodrama and horse trading because of the clear mandate to the Congress party. And not having to take the support of the Third Front means that the Congress is free to continue liberalizing India's economy .. This election is Manmohan Singh's wish come true ...

[InfiniteThoughts]

6. don't agree ...

while i am sure BJP doesn't qualify for any of the ones that mentioned (incl. terrorist group); it will fun to hear from you as to how BJP is all of these put together (racist? fascist? theocratic? - may be you are confusing it with MNS)

And by the way, did i see you say CPI(ML), the same unit that is maoist in nature and kills scores of policeman and is the backbone of the naxal movement ... seriously?

[La Lioness Priyanka]

24. the backbone of the naxal movement was the huge wealth disparity in india

and young kids in college who wanted to make social change

[JI7]

8. this is right wing crap , India is open to the global community, it's not North Korea

that's how we know BJP politicians did nothing when women and children were being raped and burned alive .

[InfiniteThoughts]

9. really ...

and the congress workers did nothing to the Sikhs in 1984 ... really?

What happened in Godhra was an aberration - an abhorrent aberration. The Muslim community should do better than plan cold-blooded murder of 60 hindus returning from pilgrimage. Why no outrage for that?

In fact, Narendra Modi did a major disservice to the Hindus through the riots. If the riots didn't happen, the world would have seen how blood thirsty Indian radical muslims have become. Modi robbed Hindus of the opportunity to display to the world how Congress & other so-called secular parties have fed the wrong hand over the last 55 years (the event happened in 2002) ...

[JI7]

10. you sound like the right wingers in America

i guess some Muslims deserved to get shot at by white power types in america after 9/11 according to the shity you are putting out.

[InfiniteThoughts]

11. you didn't get it ..

the muslims leaders who plotted 9/11 (and Godhra Train incident) deserve a lot of punishment .

As i said earlier, i still maintain that Modi was wrong in taking a passive role when the riots started.

Edit: minor correction

[JI7]

12. what has that got to do with anything else ?

i'm not saying they shouldn't and neither are others.

it's just like wingnuts who think if we don't support their shitty policies we are supporting terrorists.

[InfiniteThoughts]

13. hmm ...

i think let's agree to disagree ..

i don't think the BJP can be tainted by one incident just like the congress cannot be tainted by the 1984 sikh riots.

[JI7]

14. i don't care for Indira Gandhi , but Singh is a different person and he is Sikh also

the BJP is still the same people now as when the riots happened and they haven't really changed. just look at that Indira Gandhi grandson .

[InfiniteThoughts]

17. nope

Indira Gandhi's death set the 1984 Sikh Riots. Her son, Rajiv Gandhi (and Rahul Gandhi's father) didn't act to quell the violence (in the same way Narendra Modi sat and did nothing in during the Gujarat riots) and even remarked: "the Earth shakes when a big tree (Indira Gandhi) falls"

Over the last 25 years, there have been 10 commissions to get to the bottom of the facts. None of them pointed a finger at Rajiv Gandhi except to point the inaction of the government agencies (the same charge against Narendra Modi).

In 2007, after the charges were finally laid, Jagdish Tytler had to resign from the union cabinet of Indian government. Sajjan Kumar was the MP in Indian parliament and HK Bhagat passed away in 2005. Only after intense media pressure and election pressure did the Congress party not give seats to Jagdish Tytler & Sajjan Kumar in 2009. Instead Sajjan's seat were given to his brother - Ramesh Kumar.

Bottomline: I don't see a major difference between Congress (I) and BJP. BJP supports Hindus for electoral gains while Congress will do anything to win the votes of the Muslims.

[JI7]

18. and Singh is not the Gandhis , just as Obama has nothing to do with the racist Dems from decades ago

[InfiniteThoughts]

19. data

Jadgish Tytler was a minister till 2007 (23 years after Sikh riots); Sajjan Kumar was MP till 2008 (24 years after Sikh riots)

While Obama doesn't have anything to do with racist Dems; Congress(I) still has the leaders who perpetuated the sikh riots amongst it's cadre & leadership teams

[JI7]

21. and Singh has nothing to do with that and i'm sure most Sikhs voted for Congress

[New Dawn]

15. Do you support the BJP? That is a right-wing party.

[InfiniteThoughts]

16. answer

i do support a few policies of the BJP - relationship with Israel, strategic engagement with China, Liberalization of Indian economy, construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya are some of their policies that i am in agreement with. Forcefully imposing cultural changes (non-celebration of valentine's day etc) isn't a policy that i support. Either ways, it doesn't matter since i don't live in a region where their presence is/was strong.

In this election, i wish they came to power. But i am happy that Congress came to power for a couple of reasons - (1) difference between these 2 parties are very minimal on foreign policy, economy and domestic policy (2) no small regional party can upset the applecart or throw a tantrum as they have been doing for the last 15 years. Hence, Congress has been given a clear mandate to rule India and i think that's the best thing about this election.

[InfiniteThoughts]

20. sorry ..

for the repeated replies. let's just agree to disagree. my last comment on this post.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

23. not only was modi wrong but what was wrong was the way the police/public

disregarded this violence

if this was america doing it, you would have no problems criticizing this

[InfiniteThoughts]

28. complete agreement with you ...

Narendra Modi was wrong in not quelling the violence. He sat on the sidelines for 2 days and let the rioters run amok for these 2 days before stopping them. I will never accept him in any national role unless he expresses genuine regret for his non-action.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

22. that is utter bullshit. india has in no way pampered minorities.

india pampers the wealthy, the wealthy are typically upper caste hindus.

[TheCoxwain]

25. I think they just pamper the wealthy .( just like we do here) .. a lot of them happen to be hindoos

my 2 cents

[La Lioness Priyanka]

26. yes, thats exactly what i said though. nt

[InfiniteThoughts]

27. sorry that i have to go back on my word., i cannot but disagree with you

Source: http://us.rediff.com/news/2006/may/23franc.htm?q=tp&file=.htm
Author: Francois Gautier
Title: Are Brahmins the Dalits of today?
Date: May 23, 2006
Highlights:
* There are 50 Shauchalayas (toilets) in Delhi manned by Brahmins.
* Brahmins working as coolies at Delhi's railway stations
* You also find Brahmin rickshaw pullers in Delhi.
* Did you also know that most rickshaw pullers in Banaras are Brahmins?
* Only 5 seats out of 600 in the combined UP and Bihar assembly are held by Brahmins
* 400,000 Brahmins of the Kashmir valley, the once respected Kashmiri Pandits, now live as refugees in their own country, sometimes in refugee camps in Jammu and Delhi in appalling conditions.
* 75 per cent of domestic help and cooks in Andhra Pradesh are Brahmins. A study of the Brahmin community in a district in Andhra Pradesh (Brahmins of India by J Radhakrishna, published by Chugh Publications) reveals that today all purohits live below the poverty line.
* The study also found that 55 per cent of all Brahmins lived below the poverty line -- below a per capita income of Rs 650 a month.
* The per capita income of various communities as stated by the Karnataka finance minister in the state assembly: Christians Rs 1,562, Vokkaligas Rs 914, Muslims Rs 794, Scheduled castes Rs 680, Scheduled Tribes Rs 577 and Brahmins Rs 537.
* The Indian government gives Rs 1,000 crores (Rs 10 billion) for salaries of imams in mosques and Rs 200 crores (Rs 2 billion) as Haj subsidies. But no such help is available to Brahmins and upper castes.
* Anti-Brahminism originated in, and still prospers in anti-Hindu circles. It is particularly welcome among Marxists, missionaries, Muslims, separatists and Christian-backed Dalit movements of different hues. When they attack Brahmins, their target is unmistakably Hinduism.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

29. oh my god. you should be ashamed of yourself.

you are so full of shit. there is no such thing as anti-brahminism. there is such a thing of not wanting a particular caste to rule us all. should i feel bad that there are 50 toilet cleaners in delhi who are brahmin? are you actually serious?

so what if there are 50 white toilet cleaners? does that mean black toilet cleaners should be the norm and the fact that there are 50 white toilet cleaners, is outrageous?

i am disgusted at people like you who have no idea how disgusting the caste system is for the rest of us.

shame on you.

[InfiniteThoughts]

30. have you ever lived in Tamil Nadu/kerala?

Anti-Brahminism is a past time down south. I endured it for 20 years. You think Karunanidhi, a key ally of the Congress in the UPA regime, likes Brahmins? That he has done nothing to undermine the brahmins in Tamil Nadu?

As you are entitled to your opinions, i am sure that i am. The best (or the worst!) is that these were not even my opinions. These were the opinions of the author of the Rediff article. I was merely stating what was written in the article. And there was no need to write those things about me when you don't know a thing about me.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

31. you are regurgitating and linking to a very vile article to justify your point.

you should be ashamed of yourself.