Indian PM Modi Opens Hindu Temple in UAE Ahead of Elections | VOA News [Video]

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Middle East’s first traditional, stone-built Hindu temple on Wednesday, internationalizing his reelection campaign and his effort to push secular India into a Hindu state.

The trip to the BAPS Hindu Mandir just north of the city of Abu Dhabi capped Modi’s whistlestop tour of the United Arab Emirates during which the Indian leader embraced the UAE’s president, describing him as a brother, and spoke before global leaders at a Dubai summit.

Modi is widely expected to win a third term as prime minister in the upcoming elections in India, the world’s largest democracy. But Modi’s policies and his governing Bharatiya Janata Party have raised concerns over India’s future, particularly for members of its Muslim minority as they have come under attack in recent years by Hindu nationalist groups.

That has made warming Indian relations with the Muslim-led Gulf Arab states crucial not only for India’s energy security and for millions of its expatriate workers in the region, but also its international standing.

READ MORE HERE: https://www.voanews.com/a/indian-pm-modi-opens-hindu-temple-in-uae-ahead-of-elections/7487172.html

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