Just eight months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi swept to power in India’s general election, he has suffered an embarrassing setback in the country’s capital. In elections for Delhi’s assembly, Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was resoundingly beaten by an anti-establishment party led by a former tax inspector who campaigned for the poorest in society.
Many of the poorest in India fear that Modi is too concerned with helping businesses rather than the common man
The Aam Aadmi party, also known as the Common Man Party, is headed up by Arvind Kejriwal, a former tax inspector who has taken advantage of the chaos within the usual opposition Congress Party, which has been seen in the past as representing a tight group of wealthy families. However, the fact that his party has also defeated the incumbent BJP represents a worrying sign for Modi’s rule.
It is not even a year since he took office off the back of years of economic disappointment, promising to overhaul the country’s bureaucracy and get growth started again. However, he has faced considerable opposition to many of his key reforms, with strikes hitting the coal industry just a month ago over plans to part-privatise some of the state-owned Coal India.
The result of the election saw the Aam Aadmi party seize 65 out of 70 seats in the assembly, while Congress failed to win any seats. While the Delhi assembly election may have local implications at first, it is sure to send shockwaves across the rest of the country where many of the poorest in India fear that Modi is too concerned with helping businesses rather than the common man.
Campaigning against perceived corruption and overly powerful big business, Kejriwal captured the mood of many disgruntled Indians living near to the country’s political powerbase. Speaking to a crowd of supporters this morning, Kejriwal said he hoped to make the capital city a more equal place. “With the help of people, we will make Delhi a city which both poor and rich will feel proud of.”
