When asked about his reference to majoritarianism in his Budget speech and whether India's multi-religious and diverse society could come under attack from him, the Finance Minister said, “If Mr Modi defends majoritarianism, we will give him a befitting reply. Majoritarianism is not a way of governance. Majoritarianism is opposed to the democratic way of governance.”
To a question whether he saw any change in Modi in his campaign, Chidambaram shot back, “Of course, the undercurrent is majoritarianism. Please read his speeches carefully. The undercurrent is majoritarianism. The unstated premise of his approach is majoritarianism. And more than that is also I, Me and Mine. Has he made a single speech without I, Me, Mine theme running through it.”
Asked if Modi has not changed a bit, Chidambaram said he does not read every word of his speech and reads only what is reported in the newspapers.
“From what I gather, I think he is pushing an agenda based on majoritarianism and I, Me and Mine theory,” he said.
To a question if Modi was a danger to the idea of India, Chidambaram said, “Nobody can destroy the idea of India, much less Mr Modi. The RSS could not destroy the idea of India. The idea of India will survive. It is too strong an idea to be killed by one political outfit or one political leader.”
