Modi’s Anti-Muslim Campaign Speeches May Amount to Corrupt Electoral Practice; Ukraine Peace Summit Not Political Priority for India
Press bodies across the country on laws to muzzle the press, Andaman and Nicobar authorities following shady land acquisition methods
A newsletter from The Wire | Founded by MK Venu, Seema Chishti, Siddharth Varadarajan, Sushant Singh, Sidharth Bhatia, Pratik Kanjilal and Tanweer Alam | Contributing writer: Kalrav Joshi, with additional inputs by Anirudh SK
Snapshot of the day
June 14, 2024
Siddharth Varadarajan
If the government has its way, Arundhati Roy and Kashmiri academic SSheikh howkat Hussain will soon be prosecuted under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for a 2010 speech she gave in Delhi. Today, the Delhi Lieutenant governor granted the police formal permission to proceed with the ridiculous case.
Between 2016 and 2020, 24,134 individuals have been charged under various sections of UAPA. Only 386 of them have reportedly been acquitted.
The last data from the National Crime Records Bureau, in 2022, shows that the number of undertrial inmates in India numbered 4,34,302 or 75.8 per cent of total prisoners.
The Telegraph profiles ten political prisoners of the Modi regime. They may be the most prominent but they are certainly not the only ones. Not by a stretch. Kashmiris probably are the most numerous among them.
India will attend the ‘peace summit’ being hosted by the Swiss government on the Ukraine war this weekend but only at the official – and not political – level and certainly not at the ‘highest levels’. This may not be the era of war, as Modi famously said in 2022, but neither he nor his foreign minister is willing to do anything about it.
File under ‘No Discrimination in India’: Some residents of a government-built housing complex in Vadodara are protesting the allotment of a flat to a Muslim woman – she is the sole Muslim allotted a flat in the 462-unit complex – arguing that as the neighbourhood is dominated by Hindus, her living there was akin to “setting fire to the peaceful life of 461 families”. They also cited an “imminent law and order crisis” if Muslims were to be “allowed” to move into the complex and demanded her allotment be annulled. The woman, who is staying elsewhere at present, says the protests are not new – she was allotted the flat in 2017 – but the latest round took place earlier this week. “I always wanted my son to grow up in an inclusive neighbourhood but my dreams have been shattered…,” she was quoted as saying.
Fresh tensions erupted in Manipur’s Jiribam district on Thursday after shops belonging to members of the Hmar-Kuki-Zomi tribal community were set on fire by Meitei militants, the Indigenous Tribes Advocacy Committee alleged. The tribal rights group claimed that the shops were set on fire by the Meitei armed group Arambai Tenggol. “ITAC demands from the authorities who are in charge of law and order to immediately arrest the perpetrators and punish them appropriately as per law,” the group said. It also sought round-the-clock security arrangements for Jiribam on account of the violence, which had been relatively peaceful amid the ethnic conflict in the rest of the state.
File under Republic of Hurt Sentiments: The Gujarat high court temporarily restrained Yash Raj Films and Netflix from releasing the film Maharaj, which is about an 1861 libel case by a Vaishnavite leader against a Gujarati social reformer who had alleged that the former sexually liaised with female followers. The high court’s decision came on the back of a petition by the Pustimargi Vaishnavite sect alleging the film’s release would incite hatred against their sect. The petitioners are also seeking to invoke the Information Technology Rules. They allege they weren’t given a private screening or clarifications from the filmmakers. The next hearing is set for June 18.
File under Republic’s New Protocol: A photograph from Narendra Mod’s swearing in ceremony has veterans worked up because the seating arrangement – the Ambani family is seated way ahead of the Chief of Defence Staff and Army Chief – shows the government’s preferred warrant of precedence.
Kerala’s government decided to depute its health minister Veena George to Kuwait as the state’s official representative to help coordinate repatriation arrangements, but the external affairs ministry denied her the necessary clearance, The Hindu cites her as saying.
Orbit Connect India, a joint venture between Jio Platforms and the Luxembourg-based SES, has won approval from Indian space regulator IN-SPACe in April and June to operate satellites above India in order to provide gigabit fibre internet services, Nivedita Bhattacharjee reports. Orbit – which isn’t the only company that has won this approval – will now need a green light from the telecom department to begin operations.
“A degree of sycophancy towards Modi may disappear, businesses will feel less of a need to pander and praise as much as they did before and less reticent engaging with the opposition,” the head of a business lobby group told Chris Kay about what the outlook among industrialists and businesspeople may look like now that the BJP did not win the astounding majority it hoped for. But given that India remains the “must-win market for every multinational” because of China’s economic slowdown, things are unlikely to change all that much, one academic noted.
Manoj Jarange-Patil ended his most recent hunger strike, his fourth since September, yesterday after a minister in the state’s Maratha subquota committee and a Shiv Sena MP-elect met him. He gave the state government one month to accede to his demand of implementing a draft notification issued earlier this year promising ‘Kunbi’ certificates to Marathas, a move that would help them avail reservations.
The only way to get to the bottom of this year’s NEET-UG fiasco is “through a technical and forensic audit”, Careers360 founder Maheshwer Peri tells Soumashree Sarkar in a conversation stitching together the various concerns swirling around the exam’s murky results. Peri added that the government’s decision to cancel the grace marks it gave – rather opaquely – to some students who took the test was “bait” it expected them to take and does not address the real problems at all.
US Republican congressional representative Michael McCaul is expected to lead a bipartisan delegation of his colleagues to Dharamsala next week to meet the Dalai Lama, Reuters reports. The trip – part of a tradition of American lawmakers visiting the Dalai Lama to endorse cultural autonomy for Tibet – will likely coincide with US NSA Jake Sullivan and deputy secretary of state Kurt Campbell’s visit to India.
A day after some passengers were reported to have found themselves stranded at the Chennai Central railway station as their train to Howrah became crowded by unreserved passengers, S Vijay Kumar reports that minister Ashwini Vaishnaw held a video meeting with the general managers of all zonal railways pointing to the surge in complaints about unreserved travel.
For the Oxford-based Reuters Institute, Raksha Kumar has a piece on how five news outlets joined forces to broadcast the Indian elections' result with the help of audience funding. Newslaundry, The News Minute, The Wire, The Caravan and Scroll went live to analyse the vote.
Press bodies across the country on laws to muzzle the press
Press bodies across the country passed a resolution against proposed laws which are meant to silence the press. Do read the details here.
Rajasthan authorities find some MDH, Everest spices “unsafe”
Authorities in Rajasthan have written a letter to the Centre after the state’s health department found some spices manufactured by brands such as MDH and Everest to be ‘unsafe’ for consumption after tests, reports Reuters. As per the report, the Rajasthan government had checked samples of many spices and had discovered that a batch of Everest spice mix and two spices of MDH were unsafe. Rajasthan Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Shubhra Singh has written a letter to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), highlighting the issue.
The development comes at a time when the two brands have been facing scrutiny globally as well. Reuters quoted the letter written by ACS Singh of the Rajasthan government wherein the senior official has said that the Gujarat and Haryana governments should take immediate action since spices of both the brands are manufactured in these two states.
Andaman and Nicobar authorities following shady land acquisition methods
Land acquisition laws require that draft social impact assessments are made available to affected gram panchayats and municipal offices in the local language three weeks before the assessments are discussed in a public hearing. But on Great Nicobar island, where the government plans to build an international airport (as part of a bigger project including a transshipment terminal), Rishika Pardikar finds that authorities have not given locals their three weeks, and delayed publishing the assessment in Hindi, the local link language. Moreover, one pramukh said he – let alone the villagers he governs – did not know what kind of government plans to offer.
The Long Cable
Courts Must Decide if Modi’s Anti-Muslim Campaign Speeches Were Corrupt Electoral Practice
Arti Raghavan
Every election invites its share of consternation for violations of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by candidates. The 2024 general elections were no different. The Election Commission (ECI) received numerous complaints from parties, candidates and citizens. While the ECI was somewhat proactive in dealing with complaints against relatively low-ranking candidates, it has been reticent to confront “star campaigners” of the leading political parties. A notable instance was PM Modi’s speech in Banswara, Rajasthan on April 21, where he alluded to Muslims as “infiltrators” and “those who have many children”, and claimed that the Congress Manifesto proposed to confiscate the gold and mangal sutras of married Hindu women, and redistribute them to Muslims.
Responding to complaints by political parties against the Banswara speech, along with accusations by the BJP that Rahul Gandhi had made linguistically and culturally divisive speech, the ECI issued notice to both party presidents, requesting them to caution their “star campaigners” (who were conspicuously not named, nor were they issued notices directly). The ECI did however note that a star campaigner’s speech “…needs to be judged at a higher threshold of compliance.” Having issued notice, no further action was taken by the ECI. Modi on numerous instances on the campaign trail thereafter, made communally polarising speeches. Towards the end of the campaign, the ECI said it did not accept the explanations offered by the BJP president and reiterated the importance of campaigners adhering to the MCC. But it took no punitive action. Responding to a query at the end of the election , the Chief Election Commissioner 'clarified' that the ECI “deliberately decided” to “not touch” the top two leaders in each party.
Article 324 of the Indian Constitution confers the ECI with powers of superintendence, direction and control over the conduct of elections. In exercise of this, the ECI has formulated the MCC, and has enforced it through temporary bans on campaigning by a candidate. Neither Article 324, nor the MCC make exceptions for high offices, and the ECI’s diffidence in confronting star campaigners is questionable. However, for a violation of the MCC, the ECI’s powers are limited to that of censure or restrictions on campaigns. They cannot disqualify candidates, or prevent them from contesting elections for such violations.
This does not mean that candidates face no legal consequences for communally polarizing campaign speeches (or other legal violations during the course of the election season). The legal reckoning occurs upon the declaration of election results, through the mechanism of an election petition under the Representation of People’s Act, 1951 (RPA). Section 123 of the RPA defines “corrupt practices” as (among other things) the promotion of hatred or enmity between classes of citizens on the grounds of religion, race caste or community. The election of a candidate found guilty of committing corrupt practices may be voided, pursuant to an election petition filed within 45 days of the declaration of election results, before the relevant High Court.
An election petition may be filed by an unsuccessful candidate, or a voter on the electoral rolls in the relevant constituency. The decision of the High Court can be appealed before the Supreme Court. Should the candidate be found guilty of a corrupt practice, the matter is referred to the President to determine whether the candidate ought to be disqualified (and if so, for what period). The President must then obtain the opinion of the ECI on such question, and is bound to act on its advice. A corrupt practice can result in a candidate’s disqualification from contesting elections, holding elected office and voting for a period of up to six years.
The RPA casts its net wide when it comes to corrupt practices in an election. It is not just the candidate themselves who are implicated. A corrupt practice by a candidate’s agent, or any person acting with the candidate’s consent can be grounds to void the election. It can also lead to the disenfranchisement of the agent/person acting on behalf of the candidate, and their disqualification from contesting elections or holding office. In the context of the 2024 elections for instance, any person who campaigned on behalf of a candidate (with their consent), and is found to have engaged in corrupt practices (such as communally divisive speeches), can face potential disqualification.
Such petitions are not without precedent: Indira Gandhi’s election to the Lok Sabha in 1971 from Rae Bareilly was challenged by her opponent, Raj Narain. The Allahabad High Court eventually found her guilty of corrupt practices, and voided the election. She challenged this decision before the Supreme Court and obtained a stay, following which she declared Emergency on the grounds of internal disturbance. Thereafter, she sought to thwart the challenge to her election by a constitutional amendment that provided that the election of the Prime Minister and the Speaker cannot be questioned in any court of law (and could only be challenged before a committee formed by the Parliament). In 1975, the Supreme Court struck down the amendment as unconstitutional, though it acquitted her of the charge of corrupt practices.
During the 1987 Maharashtra Assembly elections, Bal Thackeray made inflammatory speeches that targeted the Muslim community while campaigning for a candidate, Dr Ramesh Prabhoo. The speeches echo tropes that have been invoked by the certain political leaders in recent times, including vituperative references to members of the Muslim community, the necessity to vote for the (Hindu) candidate in order to protect Hinduism and preserve India for Hindus. It also included the allegation that should one dig up any mosque, the remains of a Hindu temple would be found underneath it. An election petition was filed by a candidate before the Bombay High Court, seeking Thackeray’s disqualification, and the voiding of Dr. Prabhoo’s election. The petition was allowed on both counts, and the decision was confirmed by the Supreme Court. The election of Dr Prabhoo was declared void, and Bal Thackeray was disqualified from contesting elections and voting for six years.
A successful candidate – even one occupying one of the highest constitutional offices - must be subjected to the scrutiny of the law. Constitutional courts and the ECI are meant to play a vital role in protecting the integrity of the electoral process, and election petitions are an important test of their commitment to the rule of law. None of this is to imply that Modi’s speeches necessarily invite disqualification or the voiding of his election from the Varanasi constituency. However, there appears to exist a reasonable case for the courts to assess (through a duly filed election petition) whether his actions amount to a corrupt practice.
Corrupt practices are not the preserve of any one political party or leader alone. Vituperative campaign speeches that seek to divide the country on communal lines ought not to be erased from our memories the minute the dust settles upon an election. Election speeches are designed to be amplified. Speeches that are hateful or divisive can inflict profound harm on a nation’s social fabric. It is for this reason that the law recognizes that a person who has engaged in such speech is not fit to hold political office. The election petition is a potent democratic tool for voters, and it is worth remembering that a voter’s role does not end with the exercise of their franchise. Citizens from every constituency (and not just unsuccessful candidates) must examine whether the victory of their elected representative has been secured through corrupt practices.
The elections of 2024 have been emblematic of the status of freedom of speech and expression in our country. The past decade has borne witness to the impunity of those in power. In 2019, at an election rally in West Bengal, the Home Minister referred to illegal immigrants as termites, and threatened to cast them into the Bay of Bengal. In January 2020, the Minister of State (Finance) referred to protestors in the context of anti-CAA protests in 2020 as traitors to the country, and exhorted that they be shot. In September 2023, a Member of Parliament from South Delhi hurled communally charged abuses at fellow Member of Parliament, Danish Ali, on the floor of Parliament. These are only a few such instances in which high ranking political leaders engaged in hate speech against a minority community, in brazen violation of the law, without facing any legal consequences. What made this particularly disquieting was the contemporaneous weaponization of speech laws against journalists and activists and opposition leaders. It is imperative that this trend be arrested, and that political leaders be reminded that they face not just electoral, but also legal consequences for communally polarising speech.
(Arti Raghavan is an advocate at the Bombay high court.)
Reportedly
Amit Shah is facing severe flak, with even posters coming up in Tamil Nadu criticising him for wagging his finger at Tamilisai Soundararajan, South Chennai BJP candidate and former Telangana state governor. She was also Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry and the state BJP president during 2014-2019. Shah, while on stage for the Andhra Pradesh state swearing-in ceremony, summoned her to him and was seen admonishing her. Tamilisai had a few days ago, spoken publicly on controversial BJP leader K Annamalai’s ways and the need for the BJP in Tamil Nadu to course correct. Factional leaders owing allegiance to Annamalai started circulating the clip as one where Shah was putting Tamilisai in her place for being critical of Annamalai. But Shah got his share of brickbats as people were angry at him behaving like this with a senior woman leader of the party. Now, Tamilsai has been forced to come up with some statement saying she was only, no, not discussing the weather, but she said Shah “called me to ask about the post-poll follow-up and the challenges faced”. Shah’s ‘shahi’ manner will continue to draw scrutiny as a frazzled BJP tries to present a picture of supreme control over everything.
Deep dive
Zionism and Hindutva: Hindu nationalists scrape electoral victory but lose their Ram Temple constituency. Vikram Visana writes about the discredited culture war ideology that Hindu nationalists associate with Zionism.
Prime number: 241
RSS leader, Indresh managed to up one seat for BJP even as he tried to admonish Modi ji’s government. At the 'Ramrath Ayodhya Yatra Darshan Poojan Samaroh' at Kanota near Jaipur, the RSS national executive member did not take names but suggested that the poll outcome reflected their attitudes. "The party which did the bhakti (of lord Ram) but became arrogant was stopped at 241 but it was made the biggest party," he said, in an apparent reference to Narendra Modi-led BJP which got 240 seats in the Lok Sabha seats. So where did one extra MP come from?
He also attacked INDIA, saying they had also been punished for their stand on Ram.
Opeds you don’t want to miss
Pratap Bhanu Mehta writes that Indian voters have constrained Modi. “The elections have humbled Modi, but Hindu nationalism is not down and out. Its base in civil society remains strong. It has made prejudice against Muslims the new normal, especially in urban India.”
While Muslims and Dalits are often seen as 'vote banks', upper caste Hindus too voted in a consolidated fashion, argues Fatima Khan
Does the Election Commission have the power to treat four political leaders in the country differently from the rest of the population, particularly in matters pertaining to violations of law? Jagdeep Chhokar asks a critical question.
“The 2024 general election result shows that the Indian voter has expressed a repugnance for the politics of hatred, of divide and rule, and the politics of the Prime Minister himself, whose electoral rhetoric this time was indecorous,” writes Harbans Mukhia on the ideology of social peace which continues to work, despite the ongoing politics of hatred.
Ankur Bisen writes that “a parliamentary democracy thrives on diverse representation and opinion. The strong leader syndrome of the past decade is antithetical to such a democracy. Coalition governments have historically benefited India and should do so again” on a return to what India was missing for a decade.
Ashok Lavasa decodes the message in the RSS chief’s speech.
Obesity has become a significant problem that India can no longer ignore, writes Puja Changoiwala. The government must recognise this public health issue, which is taking an increasing toll on the population.
Modi’s new coalition government needs an inclusive approach towards minorities, writes Biman Mukherji. The loss of a majority in the election has made Modi’s BJP dependent on coalition partners, which may lead to a more consensus-driven method for passing legislation.
A closer reading of the election numbers shows how the results led to a regionally-led national outburst of an angry vote observed against the BJP. What needs to perhaps be now understood is how the INDIA bloc and the Opposition need to take this shot in the arm and use it to their advantage to restore balance and faith in India’s democratic future, writes Deepanshu Mohan.
Listen up
Anyone following Indian cricket needs to listen to this fantastic episode with Sharda Ugra and Gideon Haigh on the state of the global game, nationalism in cricket, writing, and a lot more.
Watch out
The Newsminute speaks to the son of the woman who had levelled serious charges against Yeddyurappa under POCSO, involving her minor daughter. The mother is dead now. A non-bailable arrest warrant against the BJP leader was issued, which the Karnataka High Court cancelled saying, "He is no Tom, Dick or Harry”, laying down the ground of a unique kind of jurisprudence.
Over and out
You can almost smell the wood and the fevicol reading Shruti Sharma’s profile of a small carrom board factory in Meerut, relaying in detail how every part of a board, from its frame to its crocheted pockets, is put together. It takes a lot of skill to make a carrom board, yet most in this industry in Uttar Pradesh earn less than the monthly minimum wage for skilled workers, Sharma reports.
That’s it for today. We’ll be back with you on Monday, on a device near you. If The India Cable was forwarded to you by a friend (perhaps a common friend!) book your own copy by SUBSCRIBING HERE.