New Delhi: The BJP is up in arms over an article in The Economist, which virtually calls Congress “a lesser evil” and describes the BJP’s PM candidate Narendra Modi a “divisive” force.
The Economist article states that the BJP PM candidate not only clings to the anti-Muslim vote, but “he nurtures it.” After stating that Mr Modi could well be the next Prime Minister the article adds, “Mr Modi might start well in Delhi but sooner or later, he will have to cope with a sectarian slaughter or a crisis with
Pakistan, and nobody least of all the modernisers praising him now knows what he will do nor how Muslims, in turn, will react to such a divisive man.”
Then came the sting as the article described Congress as a lesser evil. “We do not find the prospect of a government led by Congress under Mr Gandhi an inspiring one. But we have to recommend it to Indians as the less disturbing option.”
Reacting strongly to the article, BJP vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said, “Let them write what they want to. They don’t know the ground realities. The country is fed up of Congress rule. People want a Congress-free India and good governance under Mr Modi.”
