Indian and Russian elections in geopolitical chaos

In the scientific age of the twenty-first century and India becoming the third economy in the world, he himself is caught in the magic net of Hinduism and is about to change the commentary on development and democracy. Trying to move its terrible infection to Nepal is another matter of concern for us.

Not all of the more than 70 countries holding elections this year are democratic. Hence all these elections are not free, fair and equal. Groups such as Freedom House, IDEA, V-Dem or the Economist Intelligence Unit regularly measure the state of democracy around the world. According to the Economist, warnings were given at the beginning of the year that at least 28 countries voting this year would not meet the necessary democratic standards. The European Union Parliament, which will be elected this year, is the largest and most developed multinational parliament in the world. It can be classified as high level from a democratic point of view. "It is a functioning parliament, in which the majority is not predetermined by coalition government or factionalism" (Democracy Without Borders, January 2024).

Optimism is a strange thing in itself. Remembering that the World Parliament, like the European Parliament, started long ago from conception to lobbying is an exciting proposition in itself. The fight to make the world fairer and more democratic must continue on many fronts. And, we have to think big. Imagine that one day there could be a global election. What may seem impossible at first glance is by no means a pipe-dream. The idea of ​​a world parliament and universal elections is being championed by Democracy Without Borders and has already found many high-profile supporters, including former UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali. The main demand is the establishment of a parliamentary assembly at the United Nations, a step towards the development of a universal parliament, a world parliament, jointly elected by all world citizens' (Marcus Paus, European Journal of Futures Research, 2021).

Democracy Without Borders issued a dire warning about the US election earlier this year. "Of course, the presidential election in the US is particularly interesting and will have a strong impact. Much, but certainly not all, of what happens in other democracies around the world depends on who the next US president will be. If Trump or another Republican wins, we can expect a serious blow to democracy, the erosion of human rights and democratic principles, not just in America, but everywhere. The course of the Russian war against Ukraine, the situation in Palestine and many other international issues will be decisively affected by these elections, including the future course of the United Nations. If Trump wins, it will strengthen and encourage dictators in other countries, especially Putin, and weaken multilateralism. Amidst such theoretical ambitions, it will be useful to recall the elections held before entering the electoral arena of neighboring India this year.

The African country Democratic Republic of the Congo got its first female prime minister on April 1, while in Senegal, on April 3, Bassiro Diome Faye became the youngest president of a West African country. He was released from prison on March 23, just 10 days before the presidential election. Fay was imprisoned for inciting rebellion. The party of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been badly defeated in local elections in Turkey, which is considered the hub of Eurasia. The results of the local elections in Turkey have turned out to be different from the predictions made about the elections taking place in 2024.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of the North African country of Egypt was sworn in for the third time on April 2 for an additional six-year term. He was sworn in at the country's new administrative capital (NAC). It is about 28 miles southeast of Cairo. Earlier, elections have been held in Bangladesh, Taiwan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Senegal and Bhutan. At the moment, the political fever of the election debate has hit America and India in the worst way. Surprisingly, some similarities between the recent Russian elections and the ongoing Indian elections are frightening.

As the Indian Lok Sabha elections are approaching, a strange spectacle is being witnessed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has brought the India-Sri Lanka border agreement of 1974 into debate, saying that the Congress has committed treason by giving the island of Kachaetivu on the India-Sri Lanka border to Sri Lanka to intensify the geopolitical strategy. It is not difficult to understand that the opposition alliance from Ramlila Maidan called Modi a "coward who cannot look red-eyed in front of China" in response to the assessment that China has occupied 2000 square meters of land, and Modi returned the lip service he gave to the Congress on the South Indian island of Kachaetivu, Sri Lanka. "Jintaslai Tastai" is an old style. Tweeting has become a new weapon for tweeting. Can External Affairs Minister Jaishankar quote his reply to RTI dated 27-1-2015? Jaishankar was Foreign Secretary on 27-1-2017. At that time, India will give a reasonable answer to the situation of accepting the raw island as belonging to Sri Lanka? Why is the foreign minister and his ministry making mistakes now?'' Tweeted by Home Minister P Chidambaram during the Congress government, the opposition alliance has been more aggressively pushed into the geopolitical dispute.

similarities between Putin and Modi

Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, who has been in prison for almost twelve years and suffering from nerve agents, is being written by the Western media continuously in the prison by the Putin administration. It is said that he was killed on February 14 by a punch to the heart using a trained boxer. Western leaders have held Putin directly responsible for Navalny's death. US President Joe Biden called Navalny's death 'more evidence of Putin's brutality' (The Guardian, 16 February 2024). The Putin administration did not even give Navalny's body to his wife. But scenes and pictures of thousands of supporters paying tribute are gaining prominence in Western media.

Incidentally, Mukhtar Ansari, a five-time Member of Parliament from Uttar Pradesh, was killed on March 28 by the BJP-led Yogi government of UP. Ansari's crime is that he has always fought against feudalism in favor of the poor, the destitute and the poor. Mukhtar's brother Afzal Ansari (who is now also an assembly member) and his son Umar Ansari along with Kitani have been challenging the Modi administration to disprove Mukhtar's assassination as a conspiracy. This is the second time, he was poisoned about 40 days ago. Most recently, on March 18 and March 22, he was given this 'poison' again, causing his condition to worsen' (BBC, March 29, 2024).

Mukhtar Ansari has been lodged in jails in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh since 2005, facing more than 60 different criminal cases against him by the BJP government. British author and historian Patrick French in his book 'India: A Portrait' refers to him as 'one of the most popular godfathers of Uttar Pradesh' (Penguin Publications, 2007). Patrick French is one of the most interesting writers in the world of Indian politics, business and crime, meeting almost everyone and telling their stories. “Can they tell me the name of one person I attacked, who is from a weaker section? I have always fought against the powerful, I have taken power from them. I will continue what I am doing till the end of my life,” Mukhtar told French.

India, like Russia, is voting for Modi's third term exactly one month after Mukhtar's death. A curfew was imposed in Uttar Pradesh during Mukhtar's funeral. Putin called an election last March to legitimize his sixth term in Russia, exactly a month after Navalny's death. Putin reportedly won over 87 percent of the vote in that election. On the other hand, Mukhtar's death must have been a bad omen for the entire world to look almost Moscow-style.

The Modi administration, which has occupied all the state agencies since 2014, has announced that it will rule by itself until 2047, the centenary of the country's independence, while it is contesting the elections for its third term. For that, he has to arrest Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Chief Minister Hemant Soren, who is also a tribal leader of Jharkhand, and the decline of Indian democracy is being established globally. Modi's ambitions have been hampered by violence in Manipur (where more than 200 civilians have been killed), the wounding of the India-China border dispute, accusations of overturning the state governments of Himachal, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Bihar, and the international suspicion of extreme misuse of the ED and CIB. BJP has challenged the election campaign.

After the Supreme Court of India's order, the controversy over the disclosure of the much-publicized alleged electoral bonds in which more than 68 percent (about Rs. 1.6 lakh crore) was drawn by the BJP is gaining prominence in the media around the world. Among those donating to BJP, the case of Magunta Reddy, the liquor baron who was used as an excuse to arrest Kejriwal, donated 55 crores to BJP has become a joke in itself. Most of the world's liberal democratic countries, including Europe's power houses Germany and the US, have openly criticized Kejriwal's arrest. As an obstacle to Modi, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud is being discussed in the international world as a courageous judge.

Modi had a 'chai pe charcha' with the world billionaire Bill Gates to divert attention from the international media on these issues. Similarly, Russian President Putin went viral worldwide with a nearly two-hour long Kremlin interview with American conservative journalist Tucker Carlson before the election. International organizations monitoring democracy have been warning since the beginning. India, the world's most populous democracy, is also voting this year. According to Freedom House, India can no longer be considered a functioning, free and fair democracy under Prime Minister Modi' (Democracy Without Borders, 2024).

Questioning the legitimacy of the election process, Rahul Gandhi warned PM Modi and said - 'If the BJP wins the election by match-fixing and then changes the constitution, it will set the country on fire... then this country will not survive... this is not a normal election. . This election must be won by the opposition coalition to protect the country, to protect our constitution' (Indian Express, 1 April, 2024). Probably, the Indian media has prominently mentioned that no opposition alliance has made such a serious accusation in the context of Indian elections except in 1977.

While it is estimated that Putin-Xi Chinfeng and Modi can stand together as an alternative to the West in the world geopolitical turmoil, 'even if India has not bought a single nuclear reactor from the US, the reality that Delhi is now closer to Washington than at any time in the past cannot be ignored' (C Rajamohan, Indian Express, 26 March, 2024). Aiming at the upcoming elections, the Modi administration has raised its anti-China tone. On the other hand, it was Modi who sent the first congratulatory message in continuation of Putin. However, Modi prefers the American pole to the one in which Beijing participates.

is sure to follow. He has already shown the shame of it by attacking Israel in incidents such as the Gaza massacre.