There is little doubt that the quota gamble will backfire as the OBCs and Dalits are turning against Modi and BJP. It is an irony that while the government is offering reservation to upper castes, it has not taken a decision on quotas in promotion. Modi is desperate to win over the upper caste people by offering quota, but has he cleared the backlog for reservation? What about the vacancies at the Centre?
The change of guard was anticipated ever since the Maoist party’s Central Committee meeting held in February 2017 passed a resolution on ‘veteran comrades’ asking senior leadership to voluntarily step down from their responsibilities because of their age.
Exit polls showed that the Congress was winning or at least leading in BJP bastions of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Modi’s anti-poor policies, like stopping food for the poor and slashing of NREGA might prove to be his Waterloo.
Activists are being called “urban naxals” to criminalise dissent and holding a differing ideological position. RSS and the Modi government have been indulging in a nefarious game of eliminating the Dalits, Muslims and rights activists on the plea of fighting urban naxals. With Dalit resistance spilling out on the streets, the Maharashtra police has been trying to implicate activists who have stood their ground to help promote the movement for the rights for marginalised groups.