Prime Minister Narendra Modi successfully steered the BJP to its second and successive victory in the General Elections 2019. The BJP has won 303 seats in the Lok Sabha in a house of 545 MPs (and with alliance partners of NDA to a total of 353). In his second term as the Prime Minister, his government abrogated the Article 370 and passed the Citizenship Amendment Bill in both the houses of Parliament on 11 December 2019.
The last weeks of 2019 saw unprecedented and unexpected protests across the country over Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) (which grants citizenship for religious minorities in the three neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan but except for Muslims among other provisions). What is the constitutional conundrum in granting citizenship to religious minorities in Islamic and non-secular countries? The debate over the issue after the passage of the bill in the Parliament of India has polarised the country. One if the reasons is that for the first time religion had been used as a criterion for citizenship under an Indian law.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 amended the Citizenship Act of 1955 by providing a path to Indian citizenship for Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jain, Parsia and Sikh religious minorities that had fled persecution from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan before December 2014 but Muslims from these countries were not given such eligibility.
A group of organisations (AIDWA, AIQA, AISA, AISF, All India Network of Sex Workers, Aman Biradari, ANHAD, AUDQC, BAPSA, BASO, Basti Suraksha Manch, Centre for Struggling Women, Collective, DASAM, Delhi Solidarity Group, Democratic Teachers’ Front, DISSC, DSF, DYFI, Egalitarian Trails, Feminism in India, Hasratein:A Queer Collective, Jamia Queer Collective, Khudai Khidmatgar, Krantikari Yuva Sangathan, Mahila Nigrani Parishad – Women’s Federation, Muslim Women’s Forum, NCHDR, National Hawker Federation, National Network of Sex Workers, NFIW, NoMore Campaign, North East India Unites For Justice and Peace, North-East Forum for International Solidarity, OBR India, Pehchan, Pinjratod, Project Mukti, Saheli, Sangwari, Satark Nagrik Sangathan, SFI, Telangana Hijra Intersex Trans Samiti, The Pink List India, The Queer Muslim Project, Trans Rights Now Collective, Unity in Christ, WSS, Wada Na Todo Abhiyan) said in a press release: “We unequivocally reject the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the National Population Register (NPR). This process, which claims to identify illegal immigrants, is highly problematic as it treats every Indian citizen with suspicion. The combination of the NRC and NPR will force each person to prove their citizenship, thus disproportionately putting at risk people from marginalised communities.”
In this background, the supporters of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi—almost bigger than the BJP and almost more popular than the BJP—are circulating a postcard (in the featured image of this news article) that he never travelled abroad for medical treatment (like many politicians of the political establishment) among others.
How Prime Minister Narendra Modi will steer the country in 2020 in the backdrop of CAA is to be seen. To this effect, Modi soldiers or Modi Bhakts have started a campaign in addition to the BJP as how the CAA will not affect Indian Muslims through workshops and seminars and social media campaigns.
One Abhishek Singh Thakur, follower of Indian politics, mentions the following as the achievements of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his term during 2014-2019 on Quora.com:
Made India the fastest growing economy overtaking China
Took GDP from 6.6 to 7.7
6+ crore toilets built
18,452 villages electrified (Gram Jyothi Yojana)
10 crore LPG connections (Ujjwala Yojana)
1.5 crore houses built under PMAY scheme (Housing for all by 2022)
AYUSHMAAN BHARAT
GST- one nation one tax
Demonetization
Surgical strikes (Pakistan and Myanmar)
Jandhan Yojana (31 crore bank a/c opened)
Swachh Bharat
Bharat Mala Project (to build 35000 km highway across 16 states)
Sagar Mala project (Modernizing 12 major and 185 minor ports)
Modi life insurance (PM Jeevan Jyothi Bima Yojana, PM Suraksha Bima Yojana)
Mudra Loan (More than 12 crore beneficiaries)
Massive Infrastructure projects (Bullet trains, 14 lane EXPRESSWAY, FREIGHT only corridors, dams, Mumbai Trans harbour Link, Shivaji Memorial, STATUE OF UNITY, Gujarat – Gorakhpur Gas pipeline)
Average Highway construction 27 Km/day (during UPA-2 only 11.7 Km/ day)
Builds 33,361 km road in 4.5 year
1.86 lakh Bullet proof jackets and 1.59 lakh ballistic helmets for army
Jan Aushadhi Kendra (Generic medicine at lesser price)
Fasal Bima Yojana (Crop insurance scheme)
10% reservation for economically- weaker sections
PM Shram Yogi Mandhan (Pension for unorganised sector)
PM Kisan Samman Nidhi (12 crore farmers to get Rs.6000 / year)
Full Tax rebate upto annual income 5 lakh Rupees
Reduced Inflation from 6.4 to 4.1
Increased FDI from $36 billion (2014) to $60 billion (2017)
SMART CITY
MAKE IN INDIA
DIGITAL INDIA
STAND UP INDIA
SKILL INDIA
Krishi Sinchai Yojana (Irrigation development)
Saubhagya Yojana (Electricity for all households)
UJALA YOJANA (Distributed over 30 crore LED bulbs)
Triple Talaq Ban