The two-month national election campaign has shifted to a new stage in India as temperatures rise and accusations of safety threats to opposition party leaders grow louder.
BJP, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is expected to win a third term as voter recognition of him persists. Nevertheless, opposition parties continue complaining that the Modi government uses crime investigations to sabotage campaigners.
The Indian Congress party leader, a potential prime minister Rahul Gandhi, a member of the Indian political dynasty, voted in Delhi on Saturday. Currently, Gandhi was recently convicted of criminal defamation and, as such, was barred from entering parliament until the Supreme Court stepped in.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, whose Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has become a formidable and important opposition, also exercised this right. These two political icons have accused Modi of implementing a “sinister plan” of incarcerating all his political opponents.
The election is taking place in scorching heat, with the India Meteorological Department going on a ‘red alert’ for the temperature in Delhi and the neighboring states. Experts have cited climate change as the reason behind the increased frequency of the heatwaves.
Fewer people are voting in the current election compared to the last national election in 2019, and this is due to the people’s belief that Modhi would come back and the hot weather. And as the festival continues, the opposition will expect to build up a more serious challenge against the BJP.
