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Correspondent

21 August 2024 at 10:20:16 am

Imperilled Indians

The death of 13 Indians and the disappearance of three others in the unabating US-Iran conflict should end any illusion that this is merely another distant geopolitical crisis. For India, West Asia is not an abstract theatre of great-power rivalry but home to nearly nine million Indian expatriates. Every missile fired across the Strait of Hormuz carries the potential to claim Indian lives. While the Ministry of External Affairs has expressed concern, called for uninterrupted navigation and...

Imperilled Indians

The death of 13 Indians and the disappearance of three others in the unabating US-Iran conflict should end any illusion that this is merely another distant geopolitical crisis. For India, West Asia is not an abstract theatre of great-power rivalry but home to nearly nine million Indian expatriates. Every missile fired across the Strait of Hormuz carries the potential to claim Indian lives. While the Ministry of External Affairs has expressed concern, called for uninterrupted navigation and condemned attacks on commercial shipping, these statements are not enough. Indian seafarers have reportedly suffered the highest number of fatalities among all nationalities serving aboard commercial vessels caught in the conflict. Merchant sailors have become unwilling participants in a war that is not theirs. They continue to crew ships because global commerce cannot simply pause when missiles begin to fly. The burden of that reality now falls disproportionately on Indian workers. India’s foreign policy has long prided itself on strategic autonomy. In theory, that means avoiding entanglement in rival blocs while maintaining cordial relations with all sides. In practice, however, neutrality cannot become passivity when Indian citizens are paying with their lives. Protecting nationals abroad is not incompatible with diplomatic balance. It is among the first duties of any state. The conflict has also exposed a larger vulnerability. India’s dependence on the Gulf extends far beyond oil. Millions of Indians work across the region in construction, healthcare, shipping, logistics and services. Their labour underpins both Gulf economies and countless households back home. Every escalation places these workers at risk. Waiting until evacuations become necessary is an admission that diplomacy has already failed. New Delhi should therefore adopt a more assertive posture. It should intensify engagement not only with Washington and Tehran but also with Gulf capitals, pressing collectively for the protection of civilian shipping and maritime workers. It should work more actively through multilateral forums to reinforce international maritime law and freedom of navigation. Most importantly, it should make the safety of Indian nationals a central element of every diplomatic conversation concerning the conflict, rather than a humanitarian afterthought. India has legitimate strategic partnerships with the United States, Israel, Iran and the Arab Gulf states alike. Those relationships should provide leverage, not excuses for silence. Friends should be told uncomfortable truths when their actions endanger innocent civilians. The deaths of Indian seafarers are not collateral statistics to be acknowledged at weekly briefings before the news cycle moves on. They are evidence that global conflicts increasingly reach India’s doorstep through its citizens overseas. A nation aspiring to global influence cannot speak softly when its own people bear the costs of others’ wars. India has every reason to call for peace. It now has an even greater obligation to demand it with urgency, clarity and far greater diplomatic weight.

Clever seat selection helped BJP to secure historic win

The party won 65 seats against Congress, 37 against NCP (SP) and 29 against Shiv Sena (UBT)

Clever seat selection

Mumbai: The BJP’s strategic seat sharing with the allies has proved beneficial for the party. An analysis of the Assembly election results show that the BJP has scored over its main rival, the Congress, in a big way because of the direct fights.


The analysis shows that BJP defeated all three constituents of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) – Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) – in the direct fights. This is attributed as one of the reasons for the BJP’s historic poll success.


The BJP contested 147 out of 288 seats. In 76 constituencies, it faced Congress. BJP secured victory in 65 seats and lost only 11 seats, making it a whopping 86 per cent of the total direct fights. This was followed by an even stronger performance against NCP (SP). Of the total 39 fights with Sharad Pawar’s party, BJP captured 37 seats making it 95 per cent of the total fights with NCP (SP). BJP and Shiv Sena (UBT) were head-to-head in 32 constituencies, of which BJP emerged victorious in 29 seats, making this 91 per cent of the total direct contests.


According to a BJP strategist the party had bargained hard with its allies, Shiv Sena and NCP to get the desired constituencies in the seat sharing formula. “We had studied to potential candidates of the MVA. That helped us in choosing the seats where we can register comfortable victories,” the strategist said.


BJP spokesperson Niranjan Shetty attributed the success to all the party workers who worked hard to boost development, infrastructure in the state. He gave credit to Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for his contribution to the party’s success.


Shetty pointed out that in 2019, Uddhav Thackeray had stalled all the “novel” and “legendary” projects that Fadnavis had started when he had taken over as CM, making it very easy for the people of Maharashtra to strike a comparison between both the leaders and the potential they had for serving the people. “Devendra Fadnavis gave up his post very easily for the larger good. There are many such examples like Venkaiah Naidu who was BJP National President and later worked as the Vice President of India because that was the need of the hour. We seldom care about our posts,” Shetty told The Perfect Voice.


Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe refused to call the election results as the people’s mandate. “This is not at all a Janata mandate. Despite Maharashtra struggling with so many basic social issues, how can BJP acquire such a huge mandate is the question. If a student copies and fails with just passing marks, it can go unnoticed, but if a student copies and bags the number one position, something is fishy. Why is the BJP scared of ballot papers?” he said.

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