In setback for BJP, Congress party wins back Karnataka

Heavily defeated in the vote for the local Legislative Assembly by PM Modi's Hindu nationalists who won a majority five years ago. Voters rejected the identity ideology pursued through the anti-conversion law and the law against "love jihad." Bangalore Archbishop Machado: "Now a government that really serves the people in a secular way."

Bangalore (AsiaNews) - The Congress Party has regained a majority in local elections in Karnataka, the southern Indian state where Bangalore is located. This is a setback for the BJP, the Hindu nationalist party of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which had won a relative majority in the previous elections in 2018, ruling at the head of a coalition for much of the legislature.

Counting is still ongoing but the Congress Party in projections is given over 130 seats, well above the 113-seat threshold needed to have an absolute majority in the Assembly. The BJP is expected to stop below 70 seats, a conspicuous retreat from the 104 it gained five years ago. Rahoul Gandhi's party thus regains local governance in one of its strongholds one year before India's crucial general elections next year in which Modi will seek his third consecutive term.

The outcome of the vote in Karnataka is also significant because it touches on an Indian state where the BJP has ridden strongly on the identity theme of religious divisions in recent years. Last year, the local government had passed the toughest of anti-conversion laws, causing an uproar among local Christian communities. At the same time, local government chief B.S. Yediyurappa had pursued an anti-Islamic campaign against "love jihad," specifically targeting religious conversions by reason of marriage. Today's vote also appears to be a defeat of these identity politics against minority groups: indeed, early indicators show that many Hindus have also turned their backs on the BJP.

"The results of the elections in Karnataka," Sajan K George, president of the Bangalore-based Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), comments to AsiaNews, "are the reaction of the people to the hate mongers and improprieties of constitutional bodies at the cost of the lives of ordinary people in India and democratic values. With the targeted attacks on Christians by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in the last election campaign, the BJP silently shifted the political narrative away from the vikas-the mantra of 'development'-that had attracted voters in the 2014 national election victory."

"Modi has held more than 20 rallies in Karnataka, in his election meetings the BJP leadership has said that any action against the Bajrang Dal amounts to an insult to the deity of Hanuman. But in the eyes of the poor, the momentum of politicizing the religion has now worn off. Instead, the Congress Party has tried to keep the narrative on local issues, including rising prices, unemployment and corruption under the BJP government. We pray that the new government will uphold constitutional guarantees and defend religious freedom and human rights in Karnataka."

Archbishop of Bangalore Peter Machado told AsiaNews, "We were ready to accept any result, we respect all governments that are elected, but since the Congress got a majority, we say this is God's will today. We pray that he will properly serve the people of Karnataka and govern in a secular way."