London vigil for India’s democracy

Did you know that the Indian elections are taking place from 19 April to 1 June?

Did you know that if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) comes back to power, India is likely to be turned into a far-right dictatorship under Narendra Modi?

The basic principle of equal citizenship for Indians of all religions, and the Indian Constitution which guarantees equal rights to all, are under attack.  

Opposition leaders have been jailed, under false charges, to prevent them from standing in the election.

The BJP has amassed vast funds from anonymous corporate donors, larger than all the opposition parties’ funds combined, through the fraudulent Electoral Bond system. This has recently been exposed by order of the Supreme Court. It reveals government corruption on an immense scale. 

Many in India, even the Supreme Court, are warning about the use of Electronic Voting Machines which are well-known to be easily tampered with. They may well lead to unprecedented electoral fraud.

India’s Muslim citizens are facing lynchings and calls for genocide. Now under the newly implemented Citizenship Amendment Act they will face potential disenfranchisement. Vast detention centres have been built for those who will be dubbed non-citizens, and some are already in use in the state of Assam.

India is seeing an epidemic of rapes, particularly of Dalit and Muslim women, and rapists are often released without charge, or even congratulated, particularly if they are so-called ‘upper-caste’ Hindus and close to the ruling BJP. A win for the BJP will make such rapists even more confident.

If they come back to power, the Modi regime and its supporters plan to replace India’s secular Constitution with the horrifically patriarchal and casteist Manusmriti or laws of Manu, a 2^nd century law maker. The Manusmriti portrays women as vile and impure creatures who must at all times be controlled by men. It prescribes barbaric punishments to oppressed caste people who demand any vestige of equality.

In the central belt of India, Adivasi (indigenous) communities are being displaced from their ancestral lands to make way for corporates like Adani. Those who resist have been incarcerated or raped and killed. This is the background to the election.

In Kashmir, the most militarised region in the world, the Modi government revoked even the limited autonomy which was guaranteed by the Constitution. Elections are being held in the shadow of army occupation, with human and political rights suspended.

In Manipur acute violence against the Kuki-Zo people engineered by the BJP state government continues unabated, ignored by Modi.

Across the country non-violent protesters, human rights defenders, students and journalists have been locked up under draconian laws. Most recently farmers protesting peacefully were attacked with drones and pellet guns. One young farmer lost his life. Repression will heighten further if the BJP comes to power again.

Join the Vigil for India’s Democracy, 3pm, Sunday 5 May, Parliament Square, London, UK

Co-hosted by the following organisations:

South Asia Solidarity Group
Unau Welfare International
Unau Welfare UK
UK Indian Muslim Council
CasteWatch UK
Ambedkar International Mission
StriveUK
Peace in India
Scottish Indians 4 Justice
Justice Campaign South Asia
The Rights Collective
Nijjor Manush
Women Against Caste UK
Hindus 4 Human Rights UK
India Labour Solidarity
Movement For People’s Struggles – Sri Lanka ( UK)