The first year of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second term has had some historic achievements. The first year of Modi 2.0, completed just recently, will be remembered for the realisation of decades-old promises of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the massive challenges that it faces in the form of COVID-19 pandemic to push through its agenda.
In the very first year of the Modi 2.0, the government has taken several key and some controversial decisions, mainly in the social sector which includes the abrogation of Article 370, criminalisation of Triple Talaq, anti-terror terrorism law, Citizenship (Amendment) Act and there also came the Supreme Court verdict in the Ayodhya case as an incentive. The BJP-led NDA government at the Centre is turning over leaves of their manifesto book and in a phased manner, ticking each promises mentioned. BJP puts it as three Cs: Conviction, Courage and Commitment.
Last August, the Modi government took a surprise decision to scrap a Constitutional provision that granted Jammu and Kashmir relative autonomy; then in November, the centuries-old Ayodhya holy site dispute was sorted. In December, the Union government passed a bill to give Indian citizenship to minority Hindu immigrants from three neighbouring countries. Looking ahead, spending wisely and investing in the right parts of the economy will be crucial, though experts believe that Prime Minister Modi has such a strong electoral mandate that he can have his say very easily and next general election is as far as 2024.
In the past six months, Prime Minister Modi has faced three major significant challenges. Firstly, the nationwide protests over a controversial citizenship law, which led to violent attacks. Secondly, the threat of thousands of deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic and third and most important one is the economic crisis. The economic crisis is not new, as it existed before the COVID-19 pandemic but lately it has aggravated manifold due to the continued lockdown.
In his address to the nation on May 12, Prime Minister Modi announced an additional financial package to help the economy to tackle the economic crisis due to the corona virus-enforced lockdown. The new stimulus package, along with previous measures taken by the Indian government, would account for about Rs 20 lakh crore, which is around 10 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), according to Modi. This ‘package’ is meant to help MSME which employs a majority of the people in India, agricultural sector, migrant workers and small-scale farmers.
However, the benefits of this package to trickle down to the common man, will take a long time and hence Opposition parties have charged the Union government of being insensitive and suggested that the money should have been directly transferred to the citizens as they need money on an immediate basis. Raising the issue is different matter than being heard. The opposition is fragmented and too weak to compel the government on any issue.
Several political analysts have discussed in television debates that the weakest link of Modi 2.0 is the handling of finance and economy of the country. Ignoring of the tax payer middle class segment has also been highlighted in these debates urging the Modi government to have a re-look. Majority of these experts have pointed out that the demonetisation in 2016 was an utter failure while the imposition of the Goods and Services Taxes (GST) was done in a hurry. In fact the GST Council meets very often to change and amend the GST Act as if it is being run on a trial basis. Meanwhile, the Modi government has been praised too for several tough decisions, which have been able to make in the social sector.
The Modi government now faces the toughest challenge since the last six years of its rule. From the COVID-19 crisis leading to a lockdown, migrant workers movement, terror attacks in Kashmir, internal political wrangling and threat at the borders with China breathing down India’s neck. The challenge is huge and all eyes are on Prime Minister Modi, to see how he tackles such complex issues and still try to achieve his promise of five trillion dollar economy.