New Delhi: Even before the dust settles over the Lok Sabha election result in India, Pakistani media has started reacting to the mandate. They are making demands and indulging in anti-Modi commentary — from ‘India should reach out to Pakistan’, to calling the mandate “the best form of revenge on Modi” to “Modi cult cut to size”. Some also expressed remorse over the state of Pakistan’s own democracy.
Dawn in its editorial wrote, “Once the dust settles in Delhi and the BJP forms the next government, we hope that Narendra Modi reviews his foreign policy. India should reach out to Pakistan, and the state should respond positively to any Indian overtures. Naturally, rebuilding trust will take time, but long-term peace in South Asia is impossible without better Pakistan-India ties.”
Express Tribune called it a ‘Victory in the shadows of defeat’ adding that ‘Deep down, he (Modi) knows this is not the kind of victory he was hoping for. India is the world’s largest democracy and its people have shown why democracy is the best form of revenge.”
The Nation in an editorial cartoon shared a picture of Modi not receiving the majority while another headline read, “Modi cult cut to size by Indian electorate”
Speaking at a TV Today broadcast, journalist Ghulam Abbas Shah called it ‘the most interesting elections in India post-2004.’
“We might no longer witness the 56-inch Modi ”, he also quipped.
Dunya News held a live discussion on Indian elections where panellists such as Pakistani diplomat Maleeha Lodhi and political analyst Mohammed Ali among others applauded how the Indian voters chose issues of development over ‘issues of Pakistan & Kashmir’.
Ex-finance minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Hammad Azhar, who was recently in the news after he claimed his dog was stolen by the establishment, wrote a long tweet on how while the Indian people “feel empowered and their trust in their own democratic process has enhanced”, Pakistanis “feel a sense of betrayal due to their stolen mandate.”
“BJP leaders are now threatening to take over…Kashmir. The party’s rhetoric is built around taking control of all of Kashmir. Political instability and an economic crisis in Pakistan have also provided the hard-line Hindu nationalists an opportunity to increase pressure on Pakistan. Now, a third Modi term promises to have disastrous consequences not only for India but also for Pakistan and the rest of the world,” journalist Zahid Hussain wrote in Dawn.
Political anthropologist Arsalan Khan wrote, “Watching Indian elections makes one sad that this is what Pakistan could have, a real fight over what the country is about instead of a bunch of petty generals sitting in closed rooms making decisions for us all, pushing every reactionary agenda on the people.”
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Dhruv Rathee steals the spotlight
It was YouTuber Dhruv Rathee who stole the spotlight even as political commentators, journalists, activists, and social media users rallied in praise of how he changed the narrative of Indian elections.
It started with one X user noting how Rathee was instrumental in “changing the fate of the elections” adding, “Aur hmaray naseeb me Imran Riaz hai” (and we are fated to have journalists like Imran Riaz).
While some applauded his outspokenness, others viewed his perspective with scepticism, highlighting divergent opinions on issues of nationalism, democracy, and governance. Videos of Rathee criticising former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s 2018 campaign calling it “a jingoistic nationalism” went viral and soon started a social media discourse.
Soon enough, it became a debate of whether Rathee would have supported Imran Khan or not. When Hum News anchor Asma Shirazi tweeted , “He was the only opposition when no one was speaking against the regime (Indian government),” one user commented, “This is like Hitler praising Mandela”.
“If any journalist said this about Imran Khan in Pakistan he’d have been called a Patwari, Jiyala, or even a military tout by the same bunch. Dhruv Rathee looks good when he’s across the border but within the country we’re happier with Sabir Shakir, Gharida Farooqi, and Imran Riaz”, one user wrote. Another said, “Dhruv Rathee in his video ‘warns’ India may become a dictatorship soon while Pakistan is ‘already’ a dictatorship and your party is the face of it. Dhruv Rathee would be the last person who will support military-backed parties like PMLN and PPP”.
In all of this, the Pakistani humour remained intact.
“GHQ (General Headquarters) is to Pakistan what BJP is to India. Big upset in both countries,” one user wrote .
Even Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav entered the discourse when one user shared a picture of him with his party’s flag alongside a picture of Imran Khan under a PTI banner and wrote, “I believe in Red/Green supremacy’.
Singer Ali Sethi too joined in when he posted a look alike of his as one of the candidates and wrote, “apparently I lost some votes in India”.
if your enemies are rejoicing over something , it must be bad for you
Even if the vote share of the NDA hasn’t dropped by 1%, all this shows that a significant number of Hindus in India still prefer side with Muslims, in whose eyes they will always be kafirs, rather than act collectively for all Hindus
Pakis are living in denial. They need to look at situation in their own country.