Jul 22 2024 to Jul 22 2024 6:30 p.m.

EVENT HAS ENDED

Where

Bangalore International Centre

7 4th Main Rd, Stage 2, Domlur 560071

Event Description

The mandate of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections was claimed as a victory by both the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). Even though BJP’s brute majority in the Lok Sabha was dented, the return of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a third consecutive term was portrayed as a stupendous victory by supporters of the BJP. This is notwithstanding the fact that the stability of the NDA government is now dependent on allies who have displayed temperamental behaviour in the past. The INDIA Alliance was also buoyed by the mandate as it increased its numbers substantially. The Indian National Congress, the leading component of the INDIA bloc, almost doubled its numbers, while other key constituents of this disparate coalition robustly challenged the might of the BJP election apparatus. Even though the INDIA bloc could not gain power in Delhi, its combative fight against the BJP/ NDA was lauded because – as many astute observers pointed out – the 2024 elections were not seen as a level playing ground. Starting from this point, Yogendra Yadav and Dr. Vasu HV will discuss some of the implications of this mandate on the future of India. While Yadav, who is a well-known political and social activist, travelled all over the country tracking the election and even accurately called it, Dr. Vasu played a similar role in Karnataka leading the research on pre-poll surveys that broadly captured the sentiments of the people of the State. Thus, the two panelists will provide their crucial insights based on their deep and credible engagement with political behaviour at the national and state level. Critics of the BJP have sharply and consistently stated that the idea of India has been imperilled in the past 10 years when the saffron party, buttressed by its parliamentary heft, meddled with the institutional framework weakening the republican foundations on which our country was founded. Will the gain in the numbers by the political opposition mean that the political discourse in the country, that had discernibly shifted rightwards over the past decade, gradually be tugged back to a central pole position that perhaps, more accurately reflects the civilizational ethos of a diverse and complex country like India? Early signs indicate that the political opposition has been catalysed by the mandate and is rearing to take the BJP/ NDA head on but how will these diverse political actors maintain their cohesion considering that a slew of state elections will take place where they will be pitted against one another? Psephologist and Activist, Yogendra Yadav and Journalist, Dr. Vasu HV will be in conversation with Journalist, Vikhar Ahmed. A Q&A with the audience will follow. Speakers Yogendra Yadav Psephologist & Activist Yogendra Yadav is an Indian activist, psephologist, and politician focused on political and social sciences. He was a Senior Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) from 2004 to 2016 and served on the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the National Advisory Council on the Right to Education Act (NAC-RTE). Yadav co-founded Swaraj Abhiyan and Jai Kisan Andolan, and was the founding National President of Swaraj India. Prior to CSDS, he was an assistant professor of Political Science at Panjab University (1985-1993) and founded the Lokniti network. Since 1996, he has been a psephologist and political commentator for various Indian TV channels. Yadav played a key role in the 2020-2021 Indian farmers’ protest and joined the Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022. He has received the Malcolm Adiseshiah Award for Development Studies (2008) and the Global South Solidarity Award by the International Political Science Association (2009). Vasu HV Eedina.com Dr. Vasu is associated with Eedina, a digital media portal in Kannada that offers comprehensive political news and insightful analysis. He is presently a part of Jagrutha Karnataka – a progressive regional political movement in the making and for the past two decades, has been a full time activist working on organising and ensuring the rights of unorganized workers and slum communities. He was formerly the editor of Gauri Lankesh Nyayapatha. Dr. Vasu also practices as a medical doctor working on lifestyle changes to help diabetics. Vikhar Ahmed Sayeed Journalist Vikhar Ahmed Sayeed is an award-winning journalist with Frontline newsmagazine and is based in Bengaluru.