ICC Note:

Since the election of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to India’s national government, many religious minorities have mixed reactions to the appointment of Narendra Modi. Many minorities, including Christians and Muslims, fear that Modi will revert to his Hindu nationalist past and create a new India that will be less hospitable for religious minorities. Please pray for the future of India and the future of religious freedom. 

6/12/2014 India (Gulf News) – The controversial track record and role of India’s Prime Minister-elect Narendra Modi with respect to Muslims has been a matter of intense introspection ever since the 2002 Gujarat riots, which saw over 2000 people being killed and thousands getting displaced.

After his party Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) historic victory in the recently concluded general elections, the big question is: has Modi changed now?

Many Muslims are still seeking an answer to the following questions: What actually happened at the meeting between Modi and senior police officials the night before the riots took place? Did Modi ask the police to go slow on the rioters? Why are the records of that meeting destroyed even when a Commission was appointed to look at the truth? Why was Maya Kodnani appointed a minister after spearheading the riots?

“I was in Ahmedabad during the riots. The terror that people experienced was unimaginable. I have no political affiliations, but I see the episode as complete lack of governance from Modi’s end. Where was his secular voice that he so talks in now, when people were getting killed, left, right and center? Why was he not able to control riots as the head of the state? Why did he allow the massacre to continue? There is just too much smoke out there,” 55-year-old Ahmedabad-based businessman Zakir Ahmed tells the Gulf News.

Likewise, 39-year-old Farzana Sultana from New Delhi wants Modi to apologize for his alleged role in the 2002 riots.

“There are tough questions which need answers. It is inconceivable that Modi was unaware of Maya Kodnani’s role in the riots. Maya Kodnani was in Modi’s cabinet even after seven years of riots. Was he not aware of the background of his ministers? How come he got so many suitable Muslim candidates for municipal elections including Mayor immediately after state elections but not a single suitable candidate for MLA? Modi can try and redeem himself now, but what is done is done. He needs to apologize for the same, if he wants closure,” Sultana says.

Some Christians are also being cautious about Modi, apprehending challenging days ahead. There are serious concerns among Christians of possible persecution under the new BJP-led government.

“Christians already are gripped with fear and concern over the election results. Hindu nationalist groups will take advantage of the situation and use it to attack churches and members of the Christian community. There will be stringent rules and legislation restricting Christians and the exercise of the freedom of faith. We will have to find out how we can tell the new government about our problems and fears, our expectations of a strong secular government, and hold it accountable for its misdeeds whenever it falters in giving Christians security and the freedom of faith,” CA Daniel, President of the National Congress of Indian Christians, told Gulf News.

“Forced conversion laws manipulated to attack Christian pastors and a climate of impunity for perpetrators of violence against Christians has been a hallmark of BJP rule at the state level. This must not be allowed to take hold in India’s national government,” he adds.

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