Tulsi Gabbard warmly welcomes Indian strongman Narendra Modi to America

[RandySF]

Link to tweet

?s=20

Tulsi Gabbard
@TulsiGabbard
Indian PM Narendra Modi has just arrived in Houston. And we cannot wait to say hello. Are you ready Houston? #Tulsi2020 #TulsiGabbard #NarendraModi #indiansinamerica #Houston

[Me.]

1. What's The Difference Between Modi & The Traitor In WH

Not much

India Plans Big Detention Camps for Migrants. Muslims Are Afraid.

“NEW DELHI — More than four million people in India, mostly Muslims, are at risk of being declared foreign migrants as the government pushes a hard-line Hindu nationalist agenda that has challenged the country’s pluralist traditions and aims to redefine what it means to be Indian.

The hunt for migrants is unfolding in Assam, a poor, hilly state near the borders with Myanmar and Bangladesh. Many of the people whose citizenship is now being questioned were born in India and have enjoyed all the rights of citizens, such as voting in elections.

State authorities are rapidly expanding foreigner tribunals and planning to build huge new detention camps. Hundreds of people have been arrested on suspicion of being a foreign migrant — including a Muslim veteran of the Indian Army. Local activists and lawyers say the pain of being left off a preliminary list of citizens and the prospect of being thrown into jail have driven dozens to suicide.

But the governing party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not backing down.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/17/world/asia/india-muslims-narendra-modi.html

[BlueMississippi]

4. NY Times is extremely anti-India

Modi is not an islamophobe. He has Muslims in his cabinet and many Muslim MPs in his party. Modi's party also voted for and elected India's second Muslim President -- Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.

If given a choice, over 95% of Indian Muslims want to remain in India and would not go to Pakistan. They have far more opportunities and freedoms in secular India than in Pakistan's terrorism infested atmosphere.

Indian Muslims who did move to Pakistan are second class citizens and are called "mohajir"

[Me.]

8. Not So Fast

Modi’s new India: inclusive, except for Muslims? Not so fast

• Muslim fears of a BJP-led government are not irrational
• Even so, the Indian leader has been sending out positive signals – he just needs to match the rhetoric with action

“But while Modi’s pronouncement could be taken positively, the harsh reality is that the BJP has engendered a trust deficit and cynicism in the minds of Muslims by constructing a regime that has otherised them.

Muslim fears towards a BJP-led government have not been irrational. Modi’s former role as chief minister of Gujarat during the
deadly riots of 2002

, which saw hundreds of Muslims attacked and killed, cast a dark shadow over his prime ministership since 2014. And instead of healing old wounds in India’s society, Modi’s first term seemed to create new fissures in Muslim minds, making them feel alienated and helpless.”

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3015338/modis-new-india-inclusive-except-muslims-not-so-fast

India's Muslims fear for their future under Narendra Modi

“With an increase in hate crimes against Muslims in India in recent years, some fear the world's largest democracy is becoming dangerously intolerant under the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BBC's Rajini Vaidyanathan reports.

It happened just days before the first phase of voting in the Indian elections.
A Muslim trader in the north-eastern state of Assam was leaving work when he was accosted by a mob.

Shaukat Ali was surrounded by the group, forced to kneel in sludge as he was attacked.
"Are you Bangladeshi?" one man shouted, questioning his Indian citizenship.
"Why did you sell beef here?" asked another as he jabbed his finger at Mr Ali.

Instead of stepping in to help, the crowds that gathered filmed the incident on their mobile phones. “
A February 2019 report from Human Rights Watch found that between May 2015 and December 2018, at least 44 people - 36 of them Muslims - were killed across 12 Indian states. Around 280 people were injured in more than 100 incidents across 20 states over the same period.

In her annual report, United Nations Human Rights chief Michelle Bachelet raised concerns over "increasing harassment and targeting of minorities - in particular, Muslims and people from historically disadvantaged and marginalised groups, such as Dalits (formerly known as untouchables)."

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-48278441

[BlueMississippi]

9. It is only the BBC and the NY Times

They take cues from Pakistan which is a failed state run by a military.

Many smaller publications run BBC and NY Times stories

Recently, the Emir of Abu Dhabi told Pakistan that Kashmir is not a Muslim issue and he should solve it by bilateral negotiations. Pakistan's efforts have been thwarted by United Nations as well. Not a single country except Turkey has come to Pakistan's aid diplomatically.

[Me.]

10. We Will Have To Agree To Disagree On This

Time will tell

[BlueMississippi]

11. Ok .. but I suggest you travel to India and you'll see a different picture

[Me.]

16. Only If You're Willing To Part With The Cash

like big time

[IronLionZion]

21. Trump also keeps some token minorities around to prove he's not racist

and tells people that Ivanka and his grandkids are Jewish because he has something to prove.

[dalton99a]

22. +1

[BlueMississippi]

24. Modi is nothing like Trump

Modi used to be a tea salesman at a railway station tea stall. He won two elections with a landslide as opposed to Trump who lost the popular vote by 3 million.

When he was the chief minister of Gujrat, Modi grew the state's economy by 10-12% per year and created millions of jobs. He is doing the same for all of India.

India has 1.32 billion people of which 200 million are Muslim. If the Muslims were oppressed, their revolt could not be crushed.

In a country of 1.32 billion people, a few ant-Muslim incidents happen which are magnified by the Western media in their zeal to be "even-handed" -- sort of like Hillary's emails.

Like I said -- before commenting based on what you read, actually go and visit India and see for yourself.

[IronLionZion]

25. Trump supporters would love to send me to India permanently

Modi supporters don't want me in India. So I would just be a stateless refugee somewhere. My family is Christian and they keep telling my relatives to leave India and go to America. I had a Hindu girlfriend break up with me years ago when her parents found out I wasn't Hindu. They are big Modi/BJP supporters.

[BlueMississippi]

26. India is secular

and has some 58 million Christians.

The conflict comes from the Christian and Muslim insistence on converting people of other faiths. Large sums of money pour in from Saudi Arabia to US Televangelists to systematically organize camps to convert people. This is especially prevalent in tribal areas where their entire culture is threatened by such mass conversion.

I doubt any country would tolerate this. India is going to criminalize organized mass conversions. If someone wants to convert voluntarily, they can always do so by entering a mosque, a church or synagogue. There is no need to send armies of crusaders out to hunt for conversions.

btw, I had a Christian GF and her parents made her break up with me unless I was baptized. It cuts both ways.

Politics armed with religion is never a good idea.

[IronLionZion]

28. "Politics armed with religion is never a good idea."

I agree with you on that and I oppose mass conversions. It's fine with me if they outlaw that. I'm not even that religious.

Modi/BJP are promoting Hindutva, not acceptance and coexistence with the diverse faiths and cultures within India.

[BlueMississippi]

29. The "hindutwa" people are a small minority

who happen to support Modi. Just as racists and homophobes support the republican party in the US.

Mainstream BJP had leaders like George Fernandes if you recall and BJP is not hindutwa centric - it remains secular. India is very complex as you know and Western media have no clear understanding of it.

Under prior administrations, India had nearly gone communist and Modi is simply bringing it to center-left to create more jobs and eliminate the socialist era corruption. To us, it seems like a right wing ideology because he cut taxes from the confiscatory levels under socialism to a more fair system. What we forget is that the first major tax cuts in the US were passed by JFK and they stimulated the economy. Then all the republicons took it to an extreme and ruined the economy.

Tax cuts are useful to stimulate economy but are subject to the laws of diminishing returns. When taxes are already low, cutting them wrecks the economy as Reagan, Bush and now Trump will find out. In JFK's time, tax rates were very high and he brought them down to reasonable levels - actually increasing the till at the treasury.

Before Modi, the sum of various taxes on Indian businesses was 70-80% -- by instituting GST and the recent tax cut, Modi has stimulated the inflow of FDIs and investments by local companies -- which is going to create over 100 million new jobs.

[BlueMississippi]

2. He is not a "strongman"

He was elected by popular vote twice. The second time in a bigger landslide than the first time. He also does everything by the book with respect to India's constitution.

[RandySF]

3. Including human rights violations?

[BlueMississippi]

5. India has refuted all allegations with evidence

India and Israel are always being accused of this when they are both secular democracies upholding the rule of law.

[at140]

7. Assam event is attempt to weed out non-citizens

who could vote in elections.

Would you believe India has printed 800 Million voter ID cards with photo,
and no one can vote without official ID card.

Would you believe I was born a citizen in India but I require a visa to visit India now.
India does not recognize duel citizenship. I still have an old Indian passport..not good enough!

[BlueMississippi]

12. You can get OCI (Overseas Citizen of India)

which gives you the same status as a citizen except the right to vote and buy agricultural land. Unlike a visa, it is a life-long document and you can stay in India for any length of time and work there. A visa gives you 180 days before which you have to leave.

Modi is working on giving voting rights to Indian-born US, Canadian, UK, France, Germany, Australia and NZ citizens who possess an OCI document.

[JI7]

13. why do non nationals need to vote ? i heard people in India hate Indian

people who are from other countries. they said they just come to make money and look down on them.

[BlueMississippi]

14. Not true at all

Each year, on 26th January, Modi has started celebrating "Pravasi Bharatiyas" or the diaspora. He invites many foreign nationals of Indian origin with a chief guest from the diaspora. He has invited the VP of Surinam, the PM of Trinidad & Tobago, the deputy PM of Fiji Islands, president of Mauritius and many prominent Indians who have settled abroad.

India has drastically changed in the past 20 years, more so in the past 5 years.

[JI7]

19. why should indians who are citizens of other countries get these special privileges while people

living IN India are being stripped of their citizenship ?

indian americans, british indians, canadians etc already have preferable travel options just from being from those countries .

[BlueMississippi]

27. Israeli, French and German dual citizens

can also vote in their original countries. I think Russians and Canadians do too but I am not sure.

[at140]

15. Appreciate that information....

I would never know that if you did not take time to post.

Back in 2009 my wife and 2 teen age kids wanted to visit India. Then I found out how much India was charging to stamp a visa in our passports. All 3 of them are American born US citizens. Without that OCI document, I have a feeling India would charge me same rate as anyone with an American passport which is what I have.

So, instead of paying $600 visa cost, we booked a 2 week Mediterranean cruise, and it turned out to be one of our best cruises. Reason I am talking about all this is India lost at least $15,000 tourist dollars by asking too much for a visa. If the visa was like $50, we would have visited India which my family had never visited.

[BlueMississippi]

17. The visa fees are reciprocal

It is equal to what US charges for Indian citizens for a US visa.

Citizens of many countries can get an Indian visa for $0 to $30

By the way, if you still have your US passport, your wife and US born children can also get an OCI card. It is important for them to have familiarity with their roots by visiting. It builds their self-esteem about who they are.

[at140]

6. tulsi_gabbard_to_trump_we_are_not_your_prostitutes_you_are_not_our_pimp.html

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2019/09/16/tulsi_gabbard_to_trump_we_are_not_your_prostitutes_you_are_not_our_pimp.html

[JCMach1]

18. Modi is a Nationalist, Racist POS...

I still can't believe there are people on DU who believe the Hindu Nationalist party line... Seriously, WTF

Modi bears a responsibility for some of the worst religious violence ever seen in independent India ...
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/07/narendra-modi-massacre-next-prime-minister-india

[dalton99a]

23. +1. Triumph des Willens, Indian Style

In May 2014, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won a commanding majority at a general election after 30 years of coalition governments, an Indian magazine called Open published a cover story about the victory headlined “Triumph of the Will”.

This is also the name of a 1935 propaganda film by German auteur Leni Riefenstahl that was commissioned by none other than the leader of the Nazi Party, Adolf Hitler – whose name even appears in the opening credits.

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/society/article/2184614/triumph-modi-propaganda-bollywood

[IronLionZion]

20. Modi is stripping citizenship from children of Muslim refugees born in India

but not Hindu refugees. A much more liberal government was in charge decades ago when they welcomed refugees of any type.

Trump supporters desperately want to repeal the 14th amendment and take away my citizenship if they get a chance.