WEBVTT - The Rise of Modi, Part 1: Why India’s Leader Is So Popular – and Polarizing

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.

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<v Speaker 2>Last June, the White House hosted an elaborate state dinner

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<v Speaker 2>featuring an entirely plant based menu, no meat, no eggs.

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<v Speaker 2>Their vegetarian guest of honor Indian Prime Minister Nrender Modi.

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<v Speaker 2>Although Mody has been at the center of Indian politics

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<v Speaker 2>for over a decade and he's visited the US plenty

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<v Speaker 2>of times, it was his first official state visit to

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<v Speaker 2>the White House since becoming PM. It's considered the highest

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<v Speaker 2>honor for a visiting leader and a chance to build

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<v Speaker 2>a stronger friendship over food, wine, and music, or, on

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<v Speaker 2>this occasion, stuffed portobello mushrooms and cardamom infused strawberry shortcake.

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<v Speaker 2>Here's US President Joe Biden welcoming Mody.

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<v Speaker 3>Welcome to mister Rhymnis, Welcome back to the White House.

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<v Speaker 4>I've long believed that.

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<v Speaker 5>The relationship between the United States and India is one

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<v Speaker 5>of that will be one of the defining relationships of

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<v Speaker 5>the twenty first century.

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<v Speaker 4>I'm honored to be the first to have you here

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<v Speaker 4>in fifteen years.

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<v Speaker 6>Primerster Modi, Welcome back to the White House.

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<v Speaker 2>But on the same day, outside the gates of the

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<v Speaker 2>White House, some people were much less welcoming. The protest

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<v Speaker 2>group was small, only about several dozen people, but they

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<v Speaker 2>spoke to much larger fears among religious minorities back home.

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<v Speaker 2>In India, where Hindus make up the majority of the

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<v Speaker 2>nation's one point four billion people, there has been.

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<v Speaker 7>Espilation and acutional Sikhs and Bilious to be passion and

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<v Speaker 7>other minorities like Musa Christians.

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<v Speaker 2>For years, Modi has been dogged by accusations that he

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<v Speaker 2>has stoked religious division in India and not done enough

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<v Speaker 2>when that division has turned deadly, And some two decades ago,

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<v Speaker 2>US officials even denied him a visa to enter the US,

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<v Speaker 2>citing severe violations of religious freedom. And yet here he

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<v Speaker 2>was last summer, being feted by President Biden and having

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<v Speaker 2>the crowd at the White House cheering his name. So

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<v Speaker 2>how has Modi been able to rehabilitate his image, build

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<v Speaker 2>up so much power, remains so popular in India and

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<v Speaker 2>increasingly abroad. Why is he it once so beloved and polarizing,

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<v Speaker 2>and what does it tell us about where the seventy

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<v Speaker 2>three year old leader is taking India home to nearly

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<v Speaker 2>a fifth of humanity over the next five years.

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to the Big Take Asia from Bloomberg News. I'm Wanha.

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<v Speaker 2>Every week we take you inside some of the world's

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<v Speaker 2>biggest and most powerful economies and the markets, tycoons and

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<v Speaker 2>businesses that drive this ever shifting region. Today the first

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<v Speaker 2>episode in a two part series on the most powerful

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<v Speaker 2>Indian leader in years?

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<v Speaker 1>Who is Narendra Modi?

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<v Speaker 2>To understand Modi's rise to power and the driving force

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<v Speaker 2>behind it, we went back to where it all started.

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<v Speaker 2>Narendra Modi was born in this small town of Vadnagar

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<v Speaker 2>in western India, in Gujarat State.

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<v Speaker 4>It is a town where Hindus and Muslims both live.

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<v Speaker 4>You have mosques, you have Hindu temples, both practice religion

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<v Speaker 4>quite freely.

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<v Speaker 2>Sudi ran Jansen has been covering Indian politics for nearly

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<v Speaker 2>three decades. He visited Modi's hometown earlier this year and

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<v Speaker 2>met some of his childhood friends. They told him that

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<v Speaker 2>as a kid, Mody was religious.

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<v Speaker 4>Like One of the friends we spoke to used to

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<v Speaker 4>swim with him every day and he told us they

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<v Speaker 4>would all get up by six o'clock, start swimming, go across,

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<v Speaker 4>swim across the lake to the temple, pray there come

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<v Speaker 4>back and then go to school.

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<v Speaker 2>Mody says he grew up poor and that he helped

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<v Speaker 2>his father with his teacart business. He likes to tell

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<v Speaker 2>these stories on the campaign trail, where they make him

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<v Speaker 2>relatable to hundreds of millions of Indians living in poverty.

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<v Speaker 2>His friends told Sudy that growing up, he shared rooms

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<v Speaker 2>with siblings in a small house. There was no electricity

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<v Speaker 2>or even a toilet. It was here in his home

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<v Speaker 2>state of Gujarat where Mody attended meetings of the group

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<v Speaker 2>that would eventually change his life. The Rashtriya Swamzevak Sang

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<v Speaker 2>or the RSS.

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<v Speaker 4>The artists. It's a Hindu first organization. They seeing hymns

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<v Speaker 4>that are these press. They have something which is called

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<v Speaker 4>the Shakas, a morning gathering. It's an organization that also

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<v Speaker 4>puts much focus on reaching out to community and community service.

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<v Speaker 2>The group is open only to Hindu males. It's also

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<v Speaker 2>one of the few that offers activities for use in

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<v Speaker 2>small towns across India. And this group has a checkered past.

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<v Speaker 2>Two years before Modi was born, an RSS member assassinated

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<v Speaker 2>Mahatma Gandhi. That's right, Gandhi. The icon of India. The

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<v Speaker 2>RSS believes India belongs only to Hindus. According to India's

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<v Speaker 2>twenty eleven census, about eighty percent of India's population is

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<v Speaker 2>Hindu and more than fourteen percent are Muslims.

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<v Speaker 4>Then you've got other minorities like Sikhs, like Christians, you

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<v Speaker 4>have Jews in this country also. It's a multi religious,

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<v Speaker 4>multi ethnic, multi lingual country.

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<v Speaker 2>Constitution of India says everyone has a right to freedom

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<v Speaker 2>of religion, and its preamble states that India is a

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<v Speaker 2>secular country. But the RSS says India should be a

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<v Speaker 2>Hindu nation. And for Mody that was appealing.

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<v Speaker 4>One can understand with the artisis's ideology and the idea

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<v Speaker 4>that it's a hindunation. India should be a indonation and

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<v Speaker 4>Hindu first ideology. For a young mind, it is a

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<v Speaker 4>very very captivating idea.

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<v Speaker 2>In his teenage years, the seeds planted by the RSS

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<v Speaker 2>would spawn a defiant streak in Modi. When he was

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<v Speaker 2>about eighteen years old, Modi's family arranged a marriage for him,

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<v Speaker 2>but shortly after the wedding ceremony, he abandoned his wife

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<v Speaker 2>and devoted his life to Hinduism.

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<v Speaker 4>We know very little about his wife. We also not

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<v Speaker 4>seen him speak ever about his wife, and that's an

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<v Speaker 4>area that the Prime Minister himself hasn't talked about at on.

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<v Speaker 2>After he left his wife, Mody said he headed to

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<v Speaker 2>the Himalayas to go wherever God wanted to take me.

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<v Speaker 4>And his friends say that he always says that I

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<v Speaker 4>don't want to do this lift this normal life. I

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<v Speaker 4>want to do something that is out of the ordinary.

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<v Speaker 2>After two years in the Himalayas, he decided to head

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<v Speaker 2>back to Gudrant and deepen his commitment to the RSS.

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<v Speaker 2>While the RSS calls itself a social cultural organization that

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<v Speaker 2>doesn't stand in elections, it does have a political arm,

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<v Speaker 2>the Baratiya Junta Party or the BJP. Mody's talents as

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<v Speaker 2>an organizer and public speaker prompted the RSS to eventually

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<v Speaker 2>send him to work on its front lines. His big

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<v Speaker 2>break came in nineteen ninety when he was involved in

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<v Speaker 2>an immensely divisive issue that would royal the nation's politics.

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<v Speaker 2>Mody found himself front and center of a controversial effort

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<v Speaker 2>to build a Hindu temple in the northern city of Ayodia,

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<v Speaker 2>where had stood since fifteen twenty eight. Hindu nationalists say

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<v Speaker 2>the site is the birthplace of Ram, whom many consider

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<v Speaker 2>to be the supreme being of the universe. And many

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<v Speaker 2>Hindu nationalists believe that the site was previously home to

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<v Speaker 2>a Hindu temple and that the mosque was deliberately built

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<v Speaker 2>there in an affront to Hinduism.

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<v Speaker 4>Here is what legend has it, the birthplace of Ram,

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<v Speaker 4>where there's supposed to be a temple which was demolished

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<v Speaker 4>by a ruler, and this is how Hindus have been treated,

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<v Speaker 4>So it immediately appeals to the Hindu sentiment.

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<v Speaker 2>The BJP wanted to build a temple in place of

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<v Speaker 2>the mosque, and they organized a huge rally to build support,

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<v Speaker 2>a ten thousand kilometer six week rally across the country.

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<v Speaker 4>And Hodi is a man who's organizing this, as in

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<v Speaker 4>deciding on where do they stop, where do they go,

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<v Speaker 4>what do they say?

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<v Speaker 2>The rally featured a truck made to look like an

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<v Speaker 2>ancient chariot.

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<v Speaker 4>It is a toyota that is kind of rephurbished and

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<v Speaker 4>repurposed to look like a chariot. And the rally starts

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<v Speaker 4>off from Gujarat, you know, meandering all through all across India.

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<v Speaker 4>Talking to people about how the Hindus must rise.

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<v Speaker 2>The BJP turned the rally into a massive movement. Hindus

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<v Speaker 2>from across central India not only donated money, but actual

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<v Speaker 2>bricks to build the temple. Some of them came from

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<v Speaker 2>far away, walking or taking trains for hundreds of miles

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<v Speaker 2>to get that temple built. The rally also helped Mody

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<v Speaker 2>get noticed by his bosses and he.

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<v Speaker 4>Gets recognized for his ability to organize, for his ability

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<v Speaker 4>to understand what works politically, and he's taken very very

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<v Speaker 4>seriously with the BJP.

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<v Speaker 2>But just two years later, a Hindu mob decided to

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<v Speaker 2>get the temple the RSS wanted by tearing down the

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<v Speaker 2>mosque themselves. Here's how the AP reported the destruction of

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<v Speaker 2>the holy site.

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<v Speaker 1>At first it.

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<v Speaker 3>Was only a few, but before long the mob mentality

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<v Speaker 3>would take over. A few would become scores, then hundreds

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<v Speaker 3>and thousands. Tired of their leaders temporizing, fired by religious zeal,

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<v Speaker 3>they attacked.

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<v Speaker 2>The destruction of the mosque is a watershed moment. It

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<v Speaker 2>raised questions about India's secular credentials, and it escalated tensions

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<v Speaker 2>between Hindus and Muslims, which already had flared up. Regularly

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<v Speaker 2>since India's founding. It would also play a vital role

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<v Speaker 2>in a major turning point for Modi A decade later,

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<v Speaker 2>a particularly brutal episode of religious violence would shake the

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<v Speaker 2>country but present Mody and the BJP an opportunity to

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<v Speaker 2>unite the Hindu majority in a way that had never

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<v Speaker 2>been done before, giving Modi and his party tremendous power.

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<v Speaker 2>After the break, Modi takes over Gujarat and violence breaks

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<v Speaker 2>out against the backdrop of rising religious tensions, the BJP's

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<v Speaker 2>fortunes rose, as did Modis. In two thousand and one,

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<v Speaker 2>Modi took over the government in his home state of Gujarat,

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<v Speaker 2>but just a few months later, a large, deadly attack,

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<v Speaker 2>this time on Hindu pilgrims, would trigger a series of

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<v Speaker 2>events that would scar Modi's reputation for decades to come.

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<v Speaker 2>On February twenty seventh, two thousand and two, a large

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<v Speaker 2>number of Hindu pilgrims were on a train returning from

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<v Speaker 2>a Yodia to Ahemdabad, the largest city in Gujarat.

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<v Speaker 4>It so happens that there are pilgrims who are returning

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<v Speaker 4>from Ayodia as it is passing this area called gudra

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<v Speaker 4>it Is attack, gouts are set on fire.

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<v Speaker 2>At least fifty nine people were killed. Modi and other

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<v Speaker 2>officials were accused of framing the attack in a way

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<v Speaker 2>that pointed the finger at Muslims. Hindu mobs raged through

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<v Speaker 2>the state, burning their neighbors alive in some cases, while

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<v Speaker 2>Muslims also attacked Hindus. More than one thousand people died

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<v Speaker 2>in the violence, most of them Muslims.

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<v Speaker 3>Everybody attacked us, even the police. They powed kerosene an

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<v Speaker 3>asseid on us and setizen fire.

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<v Speaker 1>When the riots read.

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<v Speaker 2>Modi was accused of conspiring with bureaucrats and police officers,

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<v Speaker 2>ordering police not to respond to calls for help as

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<v Speaker 2>Muslim neighborhoods came under attack. Modi denied all the allegations. Eventually,

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<v Speaker 2>thirty one Muslims were convicted for starting the fire, a

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<v Speaker 2>verdict upheld by the Gujarat High Court in twenty seventeen.

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<v Speaker 2>In two thousand and eight, India Supreme Court appointed a

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<v Speaker 2>special investigative team to probe the actions of Modi and

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<v Speaker 2>other officials. It eventually found that there was no prosecutable

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<v Speaker 2>evidence to bring a case forward, a conclusion that was

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<v Speaker 2>then challenged in the courts. But it was only two

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<v Speaker 2>years ago, two decades after the riots, that the Supreme

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<v Speaker 2>Court officially cleared Modi of any wrongdoing once and for all.

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<v Speaker 1>But questions about.

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<v Speaker 2>What Mody did or didn't do during the riots persisted

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<v Speaker 2>despite his denials.

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<v Speaker 4>One of the major things that have haunted or kind

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<v Speaker 4>of come up again and again is the fact that

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<v Speaker 4>he did not or his government and his police under

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<v Speaker 4>him did not rush to the rescue of Muslims immediately

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<v Speaker 4>and therefore people were killed.

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<v Speaker 2>These accusations have haunted Mody. You can hear it in

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<v Speaker 2>the pressing questions from reporter Karantha Parr, who interviewed Mody

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<v Speaker 2>in two thousand and seven for CNN IBN.

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<v Speaker 7>India Today on two separate occasions, has declared that you

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<v Speaker 7>are the most official chief minister and yet despite that,

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<v Speaker 7>people's you'll call you do your face and nass murderer

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<v Speaker 7>and they accuse you of being prejudiced against Muslims. Do

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<v Speaker 7>you have an image problem?

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<v Speaker 2>Mody's response to this question was, essentially, there aren't a

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<v Speaker 2>lot of people accusing me of this, literally only a handful.

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<v Speaker 4>I think it's not.

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<v Speaker 6>Proper to say people there are two or three person

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<v Speaker 6>those who used to dog in this terminology, and I

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<v Speaker 6>always say God bless them.

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<v Speaker 2>There's a bit of back and forth. Mody appears to

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<v Speaker 2>look calm, the journalist continues to press him, and then

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<v Speaker 2>Mody abruptly ends the interview.

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<v Speaker 1>It lasts all of three minutes.

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<v Speaker 2>And Mody said in an interview later quoted by Times

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<v Speaker 2>Now that he did absolutely the right thing in two

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<v Speaker 2>thousand and two.

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<v Speaker 6>I'mists I'm a patuity. Nothing is it wrong. I'm a

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<v Speaker 6>born Hindu, nothing is it wrong. So I'm a Hindu

0:15:07.360 --> 0:15:10.160
<v Speaker 6>national list. So you can say, yes, I'm a list.

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<v Speaker 2>Yet the criticism of Modi didn't just come from within India.

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<v Speaker 2>The US, UK and EU all denied him visus over

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<v Speaker 2>allegations stemming from the riots. But in the face of

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<v Speaker 2>all this criticism, Modi would start a campaign to rebuild

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<v Speaker 2>his image, quietly laying the groundwork to triple his party

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<v Speaker 2>supporters and become one of India's most powerful figures in decades,

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<v Speaker 2>power that would soon turn him from international pariah to

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<v Speaker 2>literally being embraced by global leaders and wealthy tycoons.

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<v Speaker 5>When foreigners think of new India, they think of a

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<v Speaker 5>new Gujarat. How did this transformation happen because of one leader.

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<v Speaker 2>He would turn India into a place everywhere one is talking.

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<v Speaker 5>About our beloved leader who has emerged as the greatest

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<v Speaker 5>global leader of our times. And he is Shane narendr

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<v Speaker 5>Vhai Modi, the most successful prime minister in India's history.

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<v Speaker 4>Business loves it so vibrant Gujarad and his friendship with

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<v Speaker 4>billionnaires and gujar Riots are all kind of intertwined.

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<v Speaker 2>So how does Mody turn one of the biggest political

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<v Speaker 2>crises in his favor to become the most powerful man

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<v Speaker 2>India scene in decades. That's in our next episode, Part two,

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<v Speaker 2>Narentro Modi's Big Comeback. This is the Big Take Asia

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<v Speaker 2>from Bloomberg News.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm wanh.

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<v Speaker 2>This episode was produced by Young Young and Naomi. It

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<v Speaker 2>was edited by Caitlin Kenney, Daniel ten Kate, Emma O'Brien,

0:17:04.280 --> 0:17:08.880
<v Speaker 2>Nishantahia and Jeanette Rodriguez. It was mixed by Alex Suguiera

0:17:09.040 --> 0:17:11.760
<v Speaker 2>and Blake Maples and the story was fact checked by

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<v Speaker 2>Thomas lu and David Fox. Special thanks to Sanjai pr

0:17:15.880 --> 0:17:20.720
<v Speaker 2>Supriya Batra, taymor Soban Niam Mushaven, Elizabeth Ponso, and the

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<v Speaker 2>Bloomberg Originals team. Nicole Beamster Bower is our executive producer,

0:17:25.400 --> 0:17:27.919
<v Speaker 2>and Sage Bauman is Bloomberg's Head of Podcasts.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening to The Big Take, Asia.

0:17:30.760 --> 0:17:33.720
<v Speaker 2>Please follow this show wherever you listen to podcasts. See

0:17:33.760 --> 0:17:35.840
<v Speaker 2>you don't miss Part two of Narender Modi