Narendra Modi and the art of claiming credit
The prime minister graciously gives poor Indians what they are entitled to
IF IT’S ELECTION season in India, it’s time for giveaways. At a rally on November 4th in Chhattisgarh, one of five states holding elections this month, Narendra Modi, the prime minister, announced that a pandemic-era scheme to provide 5kg of free grain a month to 800m of India’s poorest people would continue for the next five years. As someone who had grown up in poverty, Mr Modi said, it was his sacred duty to care for the poor.
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This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Grainy season”
From the November 11th 2023 edition
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