Economist Amartya Sen: Lok Sabha Results Clearly Show That India Is Not A Hindu Rashtra

Nobel laureate Amartya Sen argues that recent Lok Sabha election results prove India is not a Hindu Rashtra. He criticizes the BJP government's policies, emphasizes India's secular nature, and expresses concern over political imprisonments and economic inequality.

A recent statement by economist and Nobel prize winner Amartya Sen has referred to the BJP government and said that the results of recent general elections have exposed India as not being a ‘Hindu Rashtra’. The ninety years old economist stressed on the need for political tolerance particularly in the light of the fact that India is a secular country.

When interviewed with the reporters, Sen responded, ‘I do not think the idea of turning India into a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ is appropriate. ’As far as the election results are concerned, India is not a ‘Hindu Rashtra’.

In the latest elections the BJP emerged as the largest party winning 240 seats but unable to get a simple majority in a 543 member Lok Sabha. This outcome has made the party to rely on its allies such as the TDP and JD(U) to be in a position to form the government. However, the opposition INDIA bloc received 234 seats and out of these, Congress secured 99 of them.

Sen also mentioned several leaders were imprisoned without trial, which reminded him of the British regime. He observed that: “We always hope to see a change after every election”. “Some of what happened earlier like people being put behind bars without trial and increased inequality between the rich and the poor are still ongoing,” he said. “That must stop. ”

The economist also criticized the formation of the new union cabinet saying it was an imitation of the earlier one with politically powerful persons continuing to occupy strategic positions despite some shuffling.

Responding to BJP’s loss in the Ayodhya seat in Faizabad, Sen said that attempts to erase the true face of India have not succeeded. He said that the Babari structure of ‘Ram Temple’, ‘spending so much money…to depict India as a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ was against the India’s tradition as reflected by Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore or Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

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These comments of Sen are made at a time when the question of India’s secularism and politics is still debated. Given these challenges in the country, the opinion of the economist helps to engage in the on-going discourse on the Indian identity and leadership.