India’s election may be over – but now is the time to pay closer attention than ever

The case of a high-profile lynching of a Muslim man by Hindus in Jharkhand serves as a test for the new government, not least because after months of divisive campaigning, Narendra Modi promised unity

There is a lull after decisive results in big elections, a moment where the country’s political machinery, analysts and journalists collectively pause to catch their breath.

Never has there been a bigger democratic exercise than India’s recent general election, and the victory granting Narendra Modi a second term was resoundingly decisive.

But taking a break doesn’t fit with the macho Modi brand – his BJP party president Amit Shah said after the result that the prime minister hadn’t gone on holiday “in the last 20 years” and wasn’t about to start now.

Fans boast that Modi 2.0 has hit the ground running creating his “vision for New India”, announcing a rollout of promised benefits for farmers and shopkeepers estimated to reach 170 million people.

He is also introducing some significant legislation – and this is where we need to keep paying close attention.

Muslim voters I spoke to in recent months – not least in Kashmir itself – were concerned about BJP pledges to end the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, India’s only Muslim-majority state. For many Hindu nationalists, the protections and job reservations enjoyed by Muslims there give them an unfair advantage.

On Monday, the BJP tabled a bill that would extend those job quotas to a larger part of the state – including areas along the border with Pakistan that are populated by greater proportions of Hindus.

Gilles Verniers, a leading analyst with Delhi’s Ashoka University, told me this is a show of intent. “It is a way to keep the issue alive and send a signal that the BJP is acting upon its campaign promises, without having to deal with the consequences of bringing in more consequential reform.”

This week has also begun with the high-profile lynching of a Muslim by Hindus, in this case a man accused of theft in Jharkhand. A mob is reported to have tied the suspect up and beat him while demanding he repeat pro-Hindu chants. He died in hospital on Saturday.

Ghulam Nabi Azad, leader of the opposition in India’s upper house of parliament, referred to the Jharkhand case saying Modi could keep his “New India”. “In Old India, there was no enmity, no anger, hate, lynchings,” he said. “Give us that India where Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and Christian live peacefully together.”

The case is a test for the new government, not least because after months of divisive campaigning Modi said his new motto would be “sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas” (“togetherness of all, development for all, trust of all”).

Yet so far, the highest-ranking BJP official to comment on the case has been the chief minister of Jharkhand, Chandreshwar Prasad Singh, who said an investigation was underway and that “the trend to politicise such incidents [is] wrong”.

On the campaign trail, Modi vowed his second term would bring equal opportunities and growth for all Indians. Now the election is over, it is vital that the international community keeps paying attention to make sure he lives up to his promises.

Yours

Adam Withnall

Asia editor