上周，莫迪及其所在政黨贏得了2019年印度大選的多數席位。消息一出，舉國歡騰。莫迪的主要對手——印度國大黨的拉胡爾·甘地等人的支持者也紛紛走上街頭，表達對莫迪連任的失望。然而這些場景并非發生在印度，而是發生在美國各地。

此次印度大選總共經歷7輪投票，在投票之前好幾個月，印度兩大主要政黨的“旅美支部”就開始在全美各地動員印籍同胞為各自政黨的候選人投票，拉票活動從灣區搞到了新澤西州，甚至是科羅拉多的洛基山脈。莫迪代表的是高舉民族主義大旗的印度人民黨（BJP），拉胡爾·甘地代表的是印度國大黨。旅美印度人們要么舉辦茶話會，要么給遠在祖國的親朋好友打電話，目的只有一個——勸說別人給自己支持的候選人投票，

這些印裔移民有的已經入籍美國，還有的已經持有美國綠卡。不過他們對印度的政治局勢十分熱心，這既是出于愛國熱情，也是出于對祖國的責任心。當然這里也有經濟方面的考慮。總之，印度人對祖國政治的熱情，已經成了美國移民中獨有的一種現象。一方面也是由于印度移民通過頻繁回國、電子郵件、Whatsapp、全球娛樂業與商業紐帶和社交媒體等，始終與他們的祖國保持著較為緊密的聯系。

2014年莫迪訪美時，紐約麥迪遜花園廣場上了自發聚集了大量印裔移民對他表示歡迎，他的身影還出現在了時代廣場的大屏幕上。不少美國政客，比如參議員科里·布克、圖爾西·加巴德以及克林頓夫婦，也對莫迪十分推崇，讓他在美國擁有了明星般的地位。

這當然也是由于大多數在美印度人支持他和他所代表的印度人民黨的緣故。這些人經常稱自己為“印度未來的守望者”，來自于新澤西州的克里希納·雷迪·阿努古拉就是其中之一。

阿努古拉是印度人民黨海外朋友會（OFBJP）的會長。在人民黨順利拿到印度的多數邦后，阿努古拉在一份聲明中表示，莫迪“憑借他承諾的基礎建設、醫療衛生和農業領域的投資，將把印度帶向下一個高度”。

阿努古拉告訴《財富》雜志，他和其他人民黨的支持者每周都會給遠在印度的親朋好友和商業伙伴打電話，甚至還會開辦茶話會，教在美印度人怎樣接觸印度選民。所有這一切的目的，只是為了宣傳給人民黨投票的好處，特別是要讓莫迪的家鄉——古吉拉特邦以外其他各邦的選民也了解莫迪，使未來五年印度能夠有一個“穩定的政府”。

阿努古拉表示，他的目標，是讓印度變成一個“對市場和企業都友好，同時能提升窮人生活水平”的國家，他認為在前任執政黨領導下，這個目標并未實現。他認為，如果企業和個人對莫迪和他的政策有一定了解，就會更傾向于投資印度企業和印度的經濟發展。

“我們看到，在（莫迪領導下的）過去五年里，我們的思維方式、做事情的方式乃至我們改變國家的方式，都有了一個大的轉變。”說到莫迪，阿努古拉的熱情比美國大選期間你在路上碰見的任何一個拉票者都不惶多讓。他對莫迪的“成就”如數家珍，比如莫迪為2.4億低收入者開設了銀行賬戶，以便于他們接受政府提供的旨在改善衛生條件的補助款。

印度人民黨海外朋友會打出的電話，通常都會得到人們熱情的回應，哪怕對方跟他們并不熟。

阿努古拉表示：“他們很高興接到來自美國的電話。”電話的內容與他跟《財富》雜志所談的東西差不多，總之就是各種列數字、擺事實、舉例子，說莫迪讓多少人用上了衛生設施，像“美國的艾森豪威爾一樣”修了多少高速公路。阿努古拉表示，人們很少會問為什么他們要從遙遠的美國向國內做“統戰工作”，不過大家就算不充分理解，至少也不反感。

在阿努古拉和他的朋友們看來，莫迪繼續執政還有一個更看得見摸得著的好處，那就是世界各國會更加重視在外印度僑民的利益。阿努古拉舉了也門、伊拉克、敘利亞戰亂期間印度撤僑的例子，這些事雖然“前任政府也會做”，不過在莫迪執政期間，印度外長斯瓦拉吉和印度使領館在解決護照、簽證、產權、投資、在外印度人投票權，甚至是承認雙重國籍等問題上，“做得更加主動……（對印度僑民）也更加友好”。

不過一直以來，批評人士都認為，莫迪人氣的上升，與印度教民族主義情緒的興起有很大關系。在印度，只有20%的人信伊斯蘭教、錫克教、佛教、伊斯蘭教、耆那教或其他宗教。

蘇哈斯·帕爾希卡爾2018年在一份學術期刊上寫道：“雖然很多人對印度教民族主義并無情感共鳴，但多數人對國家民族的概念肯定還是有情感投入的。”另外，阿努古拉還表示，印度人民黨海外朋友會的會員在打電話拉票時，一般不會被問到與“伊斯蘭恐懼癥”有關的問題。不過他認為，即便在美國，人們對伊斯蘭教也談不上“恐懼癥”。

阿努古拉認為，“恐伊癥”只是一個“看法”的問題。比如在美國，“恐伊癥”之所以成為一種現象，與“某位領導人”和他的班子有很大關系，但它并非是整個美國社會情緒的反映。阿努古拉指出，在20世紀90年代，“印度教徒和穆斯林之間的沖突”要比現在頻繁得多。但現在，反對莫迪的政客們還在“販賣恐懼”，只是為了給他們的候選人拉票而已。阿努古拉主張，印度應該成為一個“人人平等”的國家。

印度是一個非常復雜和多元化的國家，這一點也反映在了移民群體上。在美印度人操著不同的語言、方言，有不同的文化和宗教信仰，他們的政治立場當然也有很大差異。

雖然多數印度僑民都支持人民黨，但是支持國大黨的中左立場的也不在少數。國大黨的立場一般被認為更加激進，而且反對印度教民族主義。住在明尼蘇達州的IT業人士拉杰·博達對《財富》雜志表示，1947年印度獨立后，正是國大黨“從零開始建立了這個國家”。

羅伊·曼蒂納是印度海外國大黨（IOC）的領導者之一，也是特倫甘納邦同鄉會的召集人，他對《財富》雜志表示，他和他的同志們不僅深愛自己的祖國，在美國度過半生之后，他們也想以某種方式“回饋”印度。

曼蒂納是伊利諾斯州的居民。他表示，選擇支持國大黨的原因其實很簡單，他個人很欣賞美國的政治進程，他認為美國的體制有助于改善所有印度人的生活。他表示，國大黨“是一個世俗的、民主的、包容的、多元化的政黨……是這個政黨建設了印度的河流、公路和橋梁。”

多元化和包容性，對于特倫甘納邦來說，是一個尤為重要的問題——特倫甘納邦位于印度南部，其首府海德拉巴一直是許多穆斯林的家園。

曼蒂納認為，拉胡爾·甘地（印度前總理英迪拉·甘地的孫子）是一個“善良和富有同情心”的人，他關心發展、農民、就業和婦女問題。根據印度經濟監測中心的數據，僅2018年一年，印度就失去了1100多萬個就業崗位，其中絕大多數是在農村地區。印度婦女則失去了990萬個就業機會。

默罕默德·賈米爾是馬里蘭州的一名醫生，也是印度海外國大黨的一名召集人。他對《財富》雜志表示：“我相信印度的憲法……它莊嚴決定建立主權的、社會主義的、世俗的民主共和國。如果人民黨再次掌權五年，‘世俗’一詞就會遭到威脅。”

賈米爾表示，作為生活在美國和加拿大等地的海外僑民，他扮演了一個“積極分子”的角色，試圖“教育國內民眾什么是世俗主義”，以及“在發展經濟的同時注重人的尊嚴”。賈米爾表示，他在印度也屬于少數族裔，這也是他支持國大黨的重要原因，就像他在美國時支持民主黨一樣。

與OFBJP不同，印度海外國大黨不經常舉行集會，而是更加關注推動印度的社會事業。賈米爾指出：“作為社會活動家，我們采取了非常明確的立場……不要從美國向印度的政治候選人或者任何可能影響選民的人捐款。”印度海外國大黨的所有努力，都集中在供水、教育、女權等領域的具體項目上。

曼蒂納表示，海外國大黨確實也會給在印度的家人、朋友和同事打電話，但其目的在于“分享知識”，而不是單純地為國大黨候選人拉票。他指出，除了拉票之外，“我們正在創造更大的影響”。海外國大黨的很多工作是通過社交媒體開展的，尤其是通過Facebook和WhatsApp的群組。

海外國大黨想教育選民的一點，就是政治體制腐敗的危害，以及它可以如何通過操縱短期利益誘導選民投票。曼蒂納表示，在今年的大選中，有些其他黨派的候選人（不是國大黨）甚至采購了空調和銀首飾等物品“賄賂”潛在選民。

可惜的是，海外國大黨的工作并沒有在民意調查中體現出來，國大黨只在兩個邦保持強勢存在。不過，海外國大黨及其支持者以及那些反對莫迪和人民黨的人似乎并不氣餒。

在紐約的華盛頓廣場上，有一小群人聚集了起來，其中大多數是印度僑民，他們正在對著大喇叭喊話。此次集會是為了與人民黨的印度教極端主義做斗爭。

薩奇拉·維賈亞恩是紐約的一名律師，也是非盈利新聞研究項目Polis項目的發起人。他也參加了這次活動。他對《財富》雜志表示，在未來五年也就是莫迪的第二個任期內，海外印度僑民仍將扮演重要角色。

維賈亞恩表示，海外印度僑民不僅可以通過籌款和捐資捐物等形式，對印度的特定社會事業發揮重要作用，同時也能在國會發揮重要的“政治影響力”。只不過在國大黨連續掌權幾十年后，多數支持人民黨的人都將莫迪看作“能夠改造印度政治生態”的人。

維賈亞恩指出，盡管如此，“還是有越來越多的個人和組織動員起來，反對仇恨政治。”她和其他參加集會的人都認為：“越來越多的人認識到，針對‘恐伊癥’、‘恐同癥’、政府腐敗和金錢政治，不論是在印度還是在海外僑界，都必須進行斗爭。”

他們的這種失望情緒，讓人不禁想起了2016年11月特朗普勝選后美國一部分人的情緒。這些人的修辭和情緒也與那幾年反對特朗普的人如出一轍，可以說是不折不扣的“抵抗者”。（財富中文網）

譯者：樸成奎

Cheers rang out in ballrooms across the country as Narendra Modi and his party were declared as the winners of the majority of seats in the 2019 Indian elections last week. Supporters of his main rival, the Congress Party’s Rahul Gandhi or other candidates up for Prime Minister, took to public spaces in emotional shows of disappointment with world’s largest democracy as well. These scenes did not take place in India though, but all over the U.S.

For months leading up to the seven rounds of voting held over several weeks, Indians across America belonging to the international arm of the two main political parties in India: Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and his rival Rahul Gandhi’s Congress Party were hosting events akin to political rallies from the Bay Area to Edison, N.J., and even the Colorado Rockies while riding atop snowmobiles. There were canvassing strategy sessions over tea and snacks and making phone calls to friends and family back in their motherland on behalf of candidates.

These Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) are often green card holders, if not full-fledged U.S. citizens, but the interest in working on campaigns continents away in their motherland appears to be driven most by a sense of patriotism and duty to the country of their birth and early years. But there are economic considerations as well. It is an immigrant phenomenon driven by connections maintained through frequent flights, e-mail and Whatsapp, global entertainment and business ties, and social media.

Since his visit in 2014, which was greeted by throngs of NRIs in Madison Square Garden and watching on screens in Times Square, he has been somewhat of a sensation in the American diaspora. American politicians, from the likes of Senators Cory Booker and Tulsi Gabbard to Bill and Hillary Clinton, also seemed enamored with the celebrity status Modi enjoyed in the U.S. the past few years.

That is in large part due to the majority of the American diaspora being vocal about their support for him and the BJP. They often call themselves chowkidars, the Hindi word for watchmen, of India’s future and Krishna Reddy Anugula of New Jersey is one of them.

Anugula is the president of the Overseas Friends of the BJP (OFBJP) and following the party’s resounding victory in all but a few Indian states, he said in a statement that Modi will “take India to the next level with the proposed investments in infrastructure, health care, and farming sectors.”

He told Fortune he and fellow supporters made weekly phone calls to family, friends, acquaintances, and business associates back in India and even held several chai pe charcha, the Hindi phrase for conversations over tea, to educate NRIs and strategize about how to best reach voters in India. The purpose of all this: to talk about the benefits of voting for the BJP, and by extension Modi for those living outside of the Prime Minister’s home state of Gujarat, was for a “stable government” for the next five years.

The idea, according to Anugula, is to have an India that is “friendly for…market and businesses at the same time, [while] uplifting poor people” in a way he felt had not happened under the previous party’s rule. He noted that businesses are individuals are more likely to invest in India’s development and its companies if there is some familiarity with the prime minister and his policies.

“What we have seen in the last five years [under Modi] is a big shift in terms of the way we think, the way we do things, and how we can change the country,” Anugula said with the enthusiasm of any door-to-door canvasser you may encounter during an election in the U.S., rattling off several of Modi’s “achievements,” from opening 240 million bank accounts for lower-income Indians who receive government aid to improved sanitation access.

The calls the OFBJP made were usually greeted with enthusiasm, even from those they do not know well.

“They are excited to receive a call from the U.S.,” Anugula noted. The conversations often go like the one he had with Fortune, touting figures on improved access to sanitation and the construction of a national highway system “like Eisenhower did” in the U.S. He explained they rarely get asked why they are campaigning from so far away, an understanding of the ties to India seeming to be appreciated even if not fully understood.

For Anugula and friends, though, one of the more tangible advantages to keeping Modi in office seems to be the way NRIs are treated around the world. He cited evacuations of Indian citizens during times of conflict in Yemen, Iraq, and Syria, which “may have previously been done” but said Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and the Indian consulates abroad had taken to being “more proactive…and community friendly” in addressing the diaspora’s issues with passports, visas, property ownership, investments, voting by proxy for NRIs, and even potential dual U.S. citizenship since Modi has come into power.

However, critics have long tied Modi’s rise in popularity to the rise of Hindu nationalism, or Hindutva, in India where 20% of the growing population identify as Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, Jain, or other religions.

“While many people may not have any emotional connect with the idea of Hindutva, a majority certainly has emotional investment in the idea of nation,” wrote Suhas Palshikar in an academic journal in 2018. And as Anugula noted, OFBJP canvassers usually do not get asked about Islamophobia on their phone calls but he also said he does not think of it is as a “phobia” in the U.S. either.

It is a matter of “perception,” he said. In the U.S., for instance, Islamophobia has been made into an issue because of “one leader” and his advisers, but it is not reflective of a pervasive problem in American society as a whole. In India, Anugula said, riots “between Hindus and Muslims” were far more frequent in the 1990s but “fear mongering” among politicians opposed to Modi was done in order to drum up votes. Anugula contends India is a country of “everyone gets the same thing” equality.

India, though, is nothing if not diverse and complicated, and that is reflected in the immigrants who have to the U.S. Representing every one of the countries myriad languages, dialects, religions, and cultures, there are immigrants who have varied political stances as well.

Though the majority of NRIs appear to support the BJP, there are plenty who were campaigning for the Congress Party’s center-left position, seen as more progressive and opposing Hindutva. Raj Boda, an IT professional who lives in Minnesota, told Fortune that it was Congress party rule which “built the country from scratch” after independence in 1947.

Roy Manthena, part of the leadership of the Indian Overseas Congress (IOC) and specifically a convener for the south Indian state of Telangana, told Fortune that for he and his colleagues it is not just a love of his birthplace but also a way “to give back” to India after spending half his life in the U.S.

Manthena, an Illinois resident, said choosing to support Congress was not a difficult one because he admires the political process in the U.S. and believes that can help improve the lives of all Indians. Congress “is the party which is secular, democratic, inclusive, diverse…this is the party which built the rivers, roads, and bridges of India,” he said.

Diversity and inclusion are particularly important platform issues for Telangana—the southern Indian state’s capital Hyderabad has long been home to many Muslims.

Manthena spoke of Gandhi, the grandson of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, as someone “kind and compassionate” who is focused on development, farmers, employment, and women. According to the Center for Monitoring Indian Economy, the country lost as many as 11 million jobs in 2018 alone, the overwhelming majority of which were in rural areas. Women experienced a loss of 9.9 million of the jobs.

Dr. Mohammed Jameel, a physician and Maryland resident and IOC co-convener, told Fortune: “I believe in the Constitution of India…which has solemnly resolved to be sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic. So, the word secular is under threat” as the BJP comes into another five years of power.

Jameel said he sees his role as “an activist…trying to educate the masses back home” on what secularism and “having value for human dignity while developing economically” can look like since they live in countries like the U.S. and Canada. He also said his position as a minority at home and in India also informed his decision to support the Congress party, as he does Democrats in the U.S.

Unlike the OFBJP, the IOC focuses more on furthering social causes in India rather than holding rallies. Jameel noted: “being social activists we took a very clear stance…don’t send money from America” to political candidates or anyone who could influence voters. Instead all efforts are focused on specific projects concerning water access, education, and women’s empowerment.

Manthena said the group does make some canvassing phone calls to family, friends, and associates back in India, but noted it was more for “sharing knowledge” rather than just campaigning for Congress candidates. “We are creating a bigger impact” beyond just securing votes, he noted. Much of the IOC’s work centers around social media, primarily through Facebook and WhatsApp groups.

One of the issues the IOC works to educate voters about is corruption in the political system and how it can mean voting against their interests though there may be an immediate reward. Manthena pointed to some candidates from other parties—not Congress—in this year’s election buying everything from air conditioners to pieces of silver jewelry to essentially “bribe” potential voters.

Unfortunately the group’s work did not translate at the polls, as Congress only held strong in two states but the IOC, its supporters, and those generally opposed to Modi and the BJP appear to remain undeterred.

In New York’s Washington Square there was a small group of mostly NRIs gathered to show solidarity with those fighting what they deemed the BJP’s Hindu extremism, shouting into a megaphone:

Suchitra Vijayan, a New York-based lawyer and founder of the hybrid research and journalism non-profit Polis Project, was in attendance and told Fortune the Indian diaspora will play a key role over Modi’s next five years in power.

Vijayan said not only does the diaspora help with fundraising—through in-kind contributions or donations to particular causes in India—and have a strong Congressional “political clout” to lobby for his positions, but the majority who support the BJP also see Modi as “ as the man poised to “remake the Indian political universe” after decades of Congress rule.

However, she noted, “there are a growing number of individuals and organizations who are… mobilizing and organizing to counter the politics of hate.” She and others at the rally see “a growing recognition that the fight is going to be fought both in India and in the diaspora communities” against the tide of Islamophobia, homophobia, government corruption, and money in politics.

If the disappointment and general mood was reminiscent of the days following Donald Trump’s victory in November 2016, this small group’s rhetoric and sentiments almost mirror those in the U.S. opposed to Trump in the intervening years; the “resistance” as it were.