Modi: To prove he can govern as well as he campaigned, he must focus on economic growth and civil rights

Modi's next moves

by Sadanand Dhume

The simplest way to understand the enormity of the Bharatiya Janata Party's victory Friday in India's election is to place it in historical context.

India's newly elected leader, Narendra Modi, should take seriously the concerns of those alarmed by his party's history of banning or harassing controversial or critical books and authors. 

A start would be to resist the temptation to take revenge on the many media outlets that were openly, and sometimes unfairly, critical of candidate Modi. 

The most obvious sign of a robust media will be one just as critical of Modi in office as it was when he was in opposition. 

India will benefit from having elected a popular leader who has a mandate to make sweeping changes to fix the economy. 

But it will benefit more if at the same time it remains a noisy democracy where nobody is above criticism.

Read more: www.aei.org


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