Narendra Modi remains prime minister, but may have to give up power. It doesn't have to be a mistake, comments Christian Gottschalk.
There is no serious doubt that Narendra Modi can look forward to his third term as Prime Minister. This has not happened in India since Jawaharlal Nehru – and Nehru was the first incumbent after independence more than 60 years ago. The election results were successful, although Modi might have hoped for better results. For the first time he may need a coalition partner.
Modi is a Hindu man
But Modi is not Nehru. In his heyday, Nehru was popular and respected across classes and religions. Modi is not a man who can unite very different countries. He is not a president who cares about minority groups. Modi is Hindu and he is the president of Hindus. And recently he has been in the process of weakening democratic institutions. That could change if he now has to listen to other voices. The fact that Modi is still a welcome discussion partner in the West is due to two things: on the one hand, he has achieved great progress in the country's economy, and on the other hand, he is trying to build India as a counterpoint to India. China. Nothing will change in the future.
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