New Delhi: The latest Mood of the Nation (MOTN) poll published by India Today has some interesting pointers for the mood in the country, after results of the general election came in on June 4. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), while continuing to lead the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, has been reduced to a minority in the Lok Sabha.
In the CATI or Computer Assisted Telephone Survey of 136,463 respondents, 40, 591 respondents were interviewed by C-Voter between July 15 and August 10, 2024, and 95, 872 over the last 24-weeks.
To a question about who is best suited to be the next prime minister of India, Narendra Modi’s ratings have dropped below 50% for the first time, and are at 49%. Rahul Gandhi’s numbers are up from the last survey, at 22%, and the closest to incumbent Modi. The fall in those who see Modi as ‘outstanding’ is 7.3% when the survey was last done.
To a question, ‘Do you think the BJP government misuses enforcement agencies such as the ED, CBI and the IT department, more than other governments, 46% said they agreed, and only 38% thought all governments did this. The percentage of those convinced of misuse of agencies by government has risen from 43% last year to 46% this time around.
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Political scientist and activist, Yogendra Yadav has termed the survey, “a valuable glimpse into the post-election mood of the nation.”
Yadav points to economic factors being the biggest “pain points” and writes:
“Economy continues to be the biggest pain point. 5. Inflation may be down, but people can’t manage household expenses. 6. Unemployment is the supreme concern. 7. People don’t believe govt claims on employment.”
The unemployment in the country is looming larger than ever, and as the topmost failures of the regime in power.
Significantly, as reported in The Wire earlier, the MOTN polls in February pointed out that 52% of the people surveyed thought that economic policies in place were for big business. That percentage has risen considerably, to 58% holding that view.
Illustration: The Wire, Canva
Now, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi’s stature has seen a fillip, with 51% of those surveyed seeing his performance as the LoP as either outstanding or good. Nearly one-fourth (24%) rate his performance as outstanding. The Budget session of parliament saw Gandhi in an attack-mode and the BJP including its top leaders on the backfoot. The campaign to paint Gandhi as anti-Hindu and with other names appears to have backfired, as per this survey.
Illustration: The Wire, Canva
In comparison to other Opposition leaders, a preference for him is marked and he appears to be emerging as the leader amongst all the Opposition leaders. His ratings having risen to 32%, sharply up from 21%, just six months ago. Akhilesh Yadav with 8% emerges as a distant second, though his ratings too have seen a jump from 4% in February.
Rahul Gandhi is seen as the frontrunner for prime minister of India after Modi, with 29% in agreement. Home minister and effective number two in the NDA, Amit Shah is at number two, with 20%, nearly tied with Adityanath at 19%. Nitin Gadkari follows, with 13%.
For the caste census, the jump in those who approve of the idea is spectacular, at 74% or three-fourths of those surveyed approving, up from 59% in February 2024.
Those who support a key demand of the agitating farmers who in 2021 forced the Modi government to backtrack on the unpopular farm laws, the numbers are high; 74% Indians want farmers to be granted a minimum support price for their crops as a legal right. This is an idea the Opposition has been consistently pushing and the BJP-led government has been dithering on, since before the 2019 polls.
