The overseas Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and Non-Resident Indians (NRI) actively participated in the Indian elections 2014, given disaffection with the quality of polity and leadership deficit responsible for decade long misgovernance. The level of misgovernance reached its zenith to the point that all aspects of national life, be it economy, culture, national defense, education,
environment etc., have been affected putting the health of the nation in peril. The NRIs and PIOs questioned the dismal scenario that affected their self-esteem, apart from the fact that rampant corruption affected their ties with the motherland.
The NRIs and PIO’s felt that somehow the priorities of Manmohan Singh-led UPA government did not serve the national interest, not to speak of the concerns of NRIs and PIOs who have been demanding dual citizenship, similar to developed nations like UK, France, USA etc., with the intent to contribute to the Indian economy in a globalised world. In this dismal scenario, the NRIs and PIOs voluntarily took the lead, taking advantage of information technology and social media in a globalised world, to influence the elections though voters to put back the nation back to the path of development. Once BJP President Rajnath Singh announced Narendra Modi as Prime Ministerial candidate it enthused those abroad with Indian origin as they saw in Modi someone who filled the leadership deficit and gave hope to the nation.
Dr Azad Kaushik, Convener of Overseas Friends of BJP Canada Toronto stated that, hundreds of OFBJP Canada volunteers are currently in India an ‘influencing the influencers’ to mobilise opinion in favor of the BJP. Kaushik stated that while the Election Commission of India considered “offering tea as bribe” despite intense corruption in the government, the overseas Indians considered offering tea as a common courtesy in any society.
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