Lok Sabha elections ground report: For voters, Ram temple matters but welfare is key to PM Modi’s electoral fortunes

One is a commerce graduate who worked as an accountant at a firm in Nowgaon before deciding to run ataxi service. The other too is a commerce graduate from Jagdishpur who has become a night shift specialist at the reception in a tony hotel in Ayodhya as it gives him time and space to prepare for the “civil services”. The third one has not cleared school; but runs an eatery in a tourist spot near Bagdoga.

All three are (or have become) ardent devotees of Ram. All three are “proud” to be Hindus. But when the author tried to ask why they are so keen on voting for Narendra Modi in the 2024 elections, the answer is not the Ram Temple.

For all three, Modi is a manifestation of what their parents and grandparents wistfully dreamt of: a shot at a decent material life and livelihood. For all three, it is welfare schemes of this engine that have transformed their lives. So, yes, they will pray and chant the name of Ram, but will look once again at their taxi, eatery, Mudra loan, Jan Dhan account and more before they head out to cast their vote.

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Rashmi, the small-time entrepreneur near Bagdogra in North Bengal is a happy beneficiary of the Mudra loan scheme. A Gorkhali, she had sort of signed herself to a life of manual labour and meagre earnings. But prodded by her friends, Rashmi tried applying for a Mudra loan. Much to her surprised delight, the loan was approved, sanctioned and disbursed within a month. Now, she earns about ₹40,000 a month from her “Dhaba” and sends her two daughters to a “convent” school nearby.

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Bhaskar Keot, the accountant turned taxi driver too is a beneficiary of the Mudra loan scheme. Having repaid close to 80% of the loan with interest, Bhaskar now dreams of buying two cars to run from the Guwahati airport to the Kaziranga forest reserve.

Harsh Tiwari, the night shift manager in Ayodhya has a different experience. He was in senior school in Jagdishpur, Amethi in 2014. His family barely eked out a living and Harsh did not even dare to dream. His mother cooked meals in a wood fired stove. Electricity was as elusive as a mysterious date. His father, a small-time farmer who was more of a daily wage labourer, struggled hard. But Harsh says his life and that of his family changed dramatically. Jan Dhan account, LPG connections, reliable electricity, superb roads and a smart phone among other things made it possible to dream.

Harsh thanks Ram for coming back to Ayodhya. Not just for spiritual reasons. The temple has resulted in an explosion of livelihood opportunities for those willing to work hard. He says the salary he gets from the upscale hotel in Ayodhya every month is equal to what his father earned in six months. He is surprisingly mature for his age. Harsh is aware that success in a civil services exam is like a lottery. So, he is taking pains to acquire “hotel management” skills as a fall-back option.

Rashmi is a Gorkhali, Harsh is a Brahmin and Bhaskar is a Dalit. Their lives areuniquely different, yet surprisingly similar. They have what their parents always wished they could have: a chance to improve their standard of living and believe that their future will be better than their past.

The author did hear about Ram wherever he went in the two weeks he spent travelling in Assam, North Bengal, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. But more importantly, he saw the sheer power of the hundreds of billions of rupees the Narendra Modi regime has spent on welfare schemes. Women actually thank Modi for the toilets saying he has “rescued” them from a life of daily indignity. Young boys and girls thank Modi for the whole new world of smart phones and social media (though he really can’t be credited for the smart phone revolution). Dozens of people claim the ₹5 lakh free medical insurance has saved their families from misery & penury. Scores of women are proud owners of LPG connections. They are the quintessential “labhartis” who now transcend caste and ethnic identities.

More than two thirds of the voters in the 2024 elections will be young. And it is possible that women voters will outnumber males. More than Ram, it is welfare schemes that has made it possible for Narendra Modi to have a decent chance of winning a third consecutive mandate.

(This is the sixth in a series of 40 field reports from all corners of India in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections that aim to understand how the country is changing in fundamental ways.)