Has Narendra Modi’s Pakistan ploy won him the elections again?

During the Gujarat elections, Narendra Modi had accused the Congress of conducting a secret meeting with Pakistan that had been refuted by both.

PM Modi, during his election campaign, leveled a serious charge that Pakistan is interfering in Gujarat polls and claimed that Pakistani officials and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met a day before Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar made the “neech” remark against him. The statements from the Prime Minister triggered a huge backlash not just from the Congress but from across the border as well. Former prime minister Manmohan Singh asked Narendra Modi to apologize to the nation for alleging that he was conspiring with Pakistan for BJP’s defeat in the Gujarat polls. The opposition also decided they will take on the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s allegation in Parliament. Now, Pakistan media have also reacted to BJP wins in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.

The Dawn

“Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s fortunes rose with the billowing smoke of the burnt train coach in Godhra in February 2002, a tragedy he blamed on Pakistan and won the ensuing state elections. On Monday, his Bharatiya Janata Party won a fifth straight term in Gujarat, a victory that was at least partly spurred by the last-minute targeting of Pakistan, Mr. Modi’s fail-proof mascot,” reported the Dawn.

The Express Tribune

A report by The Express Tribune read, “What Modi is doing is amplifying the anti-Pakistan sentiments by targeting his political opponents for meeting Pakistani politicians and diplomats. He may be doing it for domestic political reasons but little does he realize that such an approach would cast a long shadow on the already strained ties between Pakistan and India.”

The News International

The News International, said in a report, “Modi’s claim that Pakistan was conspiring with the Congress Party to impact the election results has boomeranged. He is being harangued for his lack of “propriety or even dignity” as he accused former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and others for conspiring with Pakistan. This has severely tarnished Modi’s image – a process that can have grave consequences for his future prospects.”