he is hindu nationalist b j p party claimed significant gains in india's elections what could term number 2 hold i'm sorry kelly in berlin this is the day. i'm. putting my vote he says that this election is not far by the majority. it's not fast by the hopefuls. it's not fought by politicians. this election is being fought by the people of this country. here is. a lot of things for you going to. do the country giving up at the new plan for the next 5 years. what matters is that the people of it go because i think they're going to be privatised. and

also coming up on the day of the end is in sight for a long legal challenge in kenya it's highest court poised to issue a ruling on whether to uphold or strike down a colonial era law on same sex relations. what does that mean it would mean that. would be free to be yourself. and i hope we'll be able as a community in kenya as a community in kenya to be free to party. about minorities and we've asked who are still fighting. the party of india's prime minister narendra modi has declared victory and the country's election data released by the election commission shows that the hindu nationalist b j p is on course to increase its majority in parliament with a mandate of business friendly policies and a tough stand on national security mr modi was given a rousing welcome by b j p supporters at a rally in delhi in an earlier message on twitter the prime minister promised to

unite the country and build what he called a strong and to sift india this after running what commentators have described as a divisive campaign. and after those results were announced you correspondent and you should just well sent us the sest meant a victory. so this is a had quite good. party. if you. know no catch it became a new frame when it. is election might be even considered a referendum going to be improving and if you look at me and if you look at the books that have more den it looks like that effort underway is an extremely

positive one it is likely that. he was strong on the parliament standing the last time i don't know how i'm. not i've gone out on this street all that out by water which actually have pictures of prince noting to say thank you. thank you. for you have lessing and the congress that were in the national congress and the opposition has pretty much had to accept defeat as a very marginal gains of their fear it's not even sure that informed the leader of the opposition but a national mandate is b.s. you know we thought we'd actually gotten very nasty nationalistic johnson saying that they don't live modern india and even some hindu johns coming in i don't know but basically the country has spoken to them not only want what you know again but they want them again more than they did back in 2014 india have decided another 5 years corporate and somebody in the movie. and that was our correspondent there in

delhi let's get more now we're joined by the casing he is an analyst with the center for strategic and international studies welcome to the program sir we've heard modi say that he will build a strong and inclusive india do you buy it. well i think if. the machinery wants a stable and secure india one of the things that he's certainly going to have to tackle is the issue of economic stability and the creation of jobs and and so that's going to have to be an inclusive vision. of a country where some have jobs and others don't so he's going to have to hearken back to the campaigning days of 21000 on the promise of good days some of which we actually didn't see that this time around in the campaigning the economic arguments for a 2nd term were kind of caused by the wayside and in favor of

a more nationalistic stance but he's going to have to go back to some of his reform agenda in order to build and deliver on the dreams that the people want which is the development and i'd like to ask you more about that agenda but 1st we really just have to address the fact that i mean he has really run a very in do 1st. you know platform and a lot of people have been saying that that is increasing social tension in the country what's your view. i think that is i think that's correct and that there has been like i said in stark contrast to the platform that he used last time there was a lot more of a hindu agenda this time around and certainly there are elements of the right wing that were involved and as a result. the majority of that the b j p one last time will certainly be emboldened again and so that is there are trouble it's troubling to see that there has been

a lot of division created in the lead up to these elections and one would hope that now that the elections are done that they can get back to more of a development agenda maybe that's the message and we're seeing coming out of the prime minister he has been seen as a champion of the poor you mentioned you know these proport policies that he's been running on including free medical insurance relief for distressed farmers but you know if we look at back at his track record so far how is he on helping the poor. yes so in terms of what helps the poor so here at the center for strategic and international studies of the one chair in the lead up to the last elections we actually convened a group of stakeholders to look at what were the 30 most important economic reforms that the modi government would have to undertake in order to unleash the economic growth in the country lift you know hundreds of millions out of poverty and create jobs one thing that can be said you know from

a very objective standpoint is that the movie administration actually only implemented 9 of those reforms and has 15 of them and you know various levels of progress but most of those reforms were actually not just in the 1st 2 years and he did undertake a lot of f.b.i. reforms which is bought a lot of money into the country in order to again create the business friendly environment that's required to create jobs and eradicate poverty but the question is can he deliver on the rest of the economic reform agenda and we were hoping to add more to that list of 30 for his 2nd term he has had major national visions or missions if you will address things like health care through the care program energy access for all i mean for the 1st time since the history of the of the modern nation state nearly every household is connected to electricity thereby hopefully providing electrons for productive use and job creation so these have

been some big ticket items that have benefited the poor cooking gas is another another good example ultimately why do you think he's been so popular because i mean this is not the result that was expected in this election he wasn't expected to do this well. yeah truly is guilty as are many others that try to predict in terms of what his victory would look like i think most people thought that certainly he would come back to support of a coalition that would win certainly because the opposition is just remains to remains uninspiring and we saw that as a result we saw that a number of the major. opposition candidates particularly the congress party did not win their seats and with a weak opposition. we knew that he would be likely to win but i think many did not predict that the b j p would get an even bigger mandate i mean it's you know they

don't even need their coalition partners to run the government. i think he has been quite successful. according to some analysts in sort of politicizing some level of identity politics i wouldn't say religion politics but certainly cost base politics and forging a new coalition that is going to be more difficult to manipulate by both major parties as well as regional parties and it's important to highlight that regional parties have played a big role in india's governance and sort of king making over the last several decades that seems to be on the decline let's talk a little bit more about the gandhi family now because we know that there are actually going to be losers in this election gandhi losing his temper dash. you know what is this need now for that dynasty. i think that one has to sort of face the music do some real enter introspection and one thought that they had been doing at you know post the previous election results

but clearly that hasn't played out and you know they did have major victories in state assembly elections last november which kind of gave them a new lease you know they could breathe a little bit easier by winning state assembly elections and rajastan in the hindi heartland of mother for the nation and shut these guys but you know they installed leaders there that maybe didn't resonate with the electorate maybe they were more part of the old guard and maybe it was seen as the dynasty family not choosing young fresh faces so there's there's some real questions that the party has to answer in terms of where its future really lies so much to chip away at in this election we thank you so much for giving us some perspective the casing from the center for strategic and international studies thank you. thank. now voting has begun in elections for the european parliament to britain and the

netherlands where the 1st e.u. countries to go to the polls voters across the bloc will be casting their ballots until sunday germany is also taking part but its best known political leader chancellor angela merkel has been conspicuous by her absence from campaigning w.'s chief political editor mahela found out why. europe's most powerful woman also used to be the poster girl for her conservative c.d.u. party in e.u. elections but that history this time angela merkel left the e p p's widely unknown top candidate manfully to be mostly out alone to face the public and it was merkel successor c.d.u. party leader and a great come canberra many already see you as potential next chancellor who took on the heavy political lifting in the talks. in search of for us conservatives right wing populist are not potential coalition partners we don't want to and we won't

work with them. with nothing less than the future of europe at stake this raises the question where was. busy governing is the sort of answer within each you so much in her mania a climate dialogue in berlin and a trip to africa merkel focused on big picture politics. one of her few appearances with the e.p. piece top candidate month was in croatia where she took a stance against nationalism. part 2 to smoke patriotism and the e.u. aren't contradictions nationalism is the enemy of the european project we must make that clear in these final days ahead of the polls. the social democrat top candidate tells us merkel's absence is also a symptom of party divisions think it's honest that you have the european

candidates on the in the campaign and not the national figures on the other hand you see that the conservatives really split europe's longest serving any. insists there was simply a division of labor from chancellor and party leader share responsibility for the results no ducking away. and america land and it could come qanbar know that their current division of power between the chancery and the party headquarters can't last forever publicly both say they are determined to continue until 2021 when merkel's final term as chancellor officially ends these e.u. elections will tell us more about the chances of an exhibit come to also succeed or here in the chancery than about the stability of the current american led government itself but they're an important test for both. and let's get more now on

that task we're joined here in the studio by the berlin correspondent for the economist ben d'alene radio welcome to the program a little why do you think marital is seemingly sitting this one out so i think it's . amber phrases but but in some ways i think she wants to leave the stage who who's probably going to be her successor has been her success as head of the party mrs kind qabala and i think maybe she thinks it's good for you know not to play too dominant a row good form perhaps but i mean looking at the bigger picture here i mean there is so much at stake for europe in this election we have populous euro skeptic far right parties polling really well do you think that merkel is playing with fire. i'm not sure yes i think it's the most important election in the european union's history it is also the 2nd biggest democratic exercise in the wood off the india's election which is which is interesting just in terms of the sheer number of voters

100000000 voters parts so it is hugely important in the european parliament has gained in importance in the in the sink years. would muckle make such a different if she were more active at the moment yes she's still very popular but i think people want a new generation to take center stage so i think it's probably not such a big deal ok we have to talk about britain because they kicked off voting today. there we can really see big gains for nigel per for raj in his pro brags it policy how do you see that influencing the dynamic in the european parliament we don't have results yet but niger for office is forecast to do well and it shows one thing is that the supporters of rex's have not really changed their minds myself. as an opponent of franks i was obviously hoping that after 2 years more than 2 years people would change their mind that's not the case and so it's reflected in the results and if he's not going to win to come in 1st he's likely to do quite well

with his new party you mentioned that this is the most important election that we've ever seen do you see any potential surprises here i think the thing with which people haven't focused on the off. talk a lot about the rise of populist party but i think it's a general fragmentation we seen the rise of the demise of not the demise of let's say the the weakening of the old monolithic parties of the ones under the umbrella of the e.p. piece of the center right or the s. and d. the center left these 2 big blocks are weakening but you have also so you have the greens you have the populists you have the the radical left rising and i think that's going to change the dynamic of the european union and of the work is this going to become far more political with with more for debates and maybe more interesting too it's been called the netflix's ation in fact of politics there's some sort of something for everyone you can pick and choose what you will would you agree with that assessment yes it's

a flippant assessment but there is some truth to it and surely i think we will see a much more complicated europe a much more fragmented one with centrifugal forces eating away at something that was basically dominated by these 2 blocs the if you and the s.d. european commission president we know that potentially a german could be at the helm do you think that that's what we'll see. not certain the e.v.p. is likely to be the strongest party still so the center right and of course manfred way but it's candidate. so that would speak for him getting the job but i think it's not a done deal could you think the best candidate would be. difficult to say i think he's he's he's good. to have a real attorneys to know it would basically play though into the argument of nigel farage for example who says the germans are running the show here in europe absolutely and in that sense it be better if an historian with very strong

candidates or you know another country that has not played such a big role in the e.u. i agree with that because it feeds into his ethnic and. berlin for the economist thank you so much for joining us with i think us for having me. well kenya is preparing for what could be a landmark ruling on the legality of same sex relations the country's highest court is due to reveal its decision on whether a large dating from the colonial era banning gay sex is legal or unconstitutional now observers say that if the ban is struck down it could have a ripple effect across africa expect a ruling follows years of work and campaigning by. activists in kenya. the rainbow flag is a symbol of gay pride across the world but in kenya it's rarely seen fly. the national gay and lesbian human rights commission is one of the few places that

displeases proud and it's here that the fight to repeal an anti homosexuals law in kenya is being fought the law it is somewhat vague given by god it was taken from very very old laws which were previously formed from canon law so the law is very vague in its wording however what it into me it's is that carnal knowledge against the order of nature that is same sex activities specifically between males is criminal and shall be punished with up to 14 years in prison. the kind of high court was expected to give a ruling on decriminalizing homosexuality in february but the judgment was pushed back. it's very tense as one would expect it to be we've been waiting for this for a long time and with the postponement in february where obviously really hopeful that the courts will read the judgment and of course it will be in our favor the l.g.b. to community is consciously weighting the ruling and the public's reaction to it

the latter is a big unknown can public opinion on this issue is really anyone's guess and that's because here in this country conversations about homosexuality or the queer community don't happen openly and one person is saying that violence is part of the problem. that person is telling what she wrote he hopes the upcoming court's ruling will encourage constructive dialogue it would set a precedent for other countries that are trying to do to go down the dicom as a should. and i strongly believe it's the right thing to do and the right people can i ask you what it would mean to him personally if the courts ruled to repeal the law. what does he mean it would mean that would be free to be ourselves. and i hope we'll be able as a community in kenya as a queer community in kenya to be free to carty. about minorities and we have asked

who are fighting to be recognized. by the national gay and lesbian human rights commission they're preparing for any outcome and they promise to keep fighting if this friday doesn't and operation. and i have the great pleasure now of being joined from nairobi by the activists that you just saw in there that he is kevin much hero kevin thank you so much for joining us 1st of all and we'd like to ask you because you know as we've heard same sex relations could soon be legal in kenya this has been a hard fought battle how are you feeling today. for the 1st time or who had done the previous because for many in february i'm really hopeful that this will be good for the country. tell us a little bit more about what you do and what other activists have gone through

basically to get the country to this point. this is going to be. with. the national really human rights commission. report there's a lot of discussions and. this is a discussion that we have about. this we thought is impossible to find. our. own time. through. the way. to get to where we are. 10 years and i'm really really proud of the organizations that have. come out of

the. tell us because we heard in that report that basically this is really not an issue that is discussed in kenyan society when you've gone out there and you've been having these conversations quite openly what is the reaction that you have encountered i mean are you experiencing opposition are you experiencing silence or are you experiencing support. so you've won a war says ken yes the. national language is silence and in some cases we do get on our silence or a light long in 24 people for a sure krishi and there are people who just went quiet obviously there is organization but i think people are afraid to come out. in support of the movement because there is that guilt by association unfortunately

people are afraid that in their view that is the biggest thing as an anti-business movement when all you want to highlight is you on our friends and i want my hands on my friends to come out in public but for some people there is that. thinking standing up for us and. i'm really hoping that they also get to you know this is this is important this is important not just for us as a social minority as a minority group or for the country. and as you mentioned earlier i mean it could be quite a big day coming up you know aside from that what more do you think still needs to be done. i think there's a lot more room for. the normal rules for and usually injuring people in a language that is intrinsically in say surely. to explain the identity and gender characteristics in the language that he's accountable. for me if we do we are

called into truly and even if we do it of course is yours truly tomorrow is an all consuming for us to engage in or all guns blazing in explaining to people and i mean the beauty of all sexualities there genies are all the borstal now and it is our activists trying. to educate people more so about racial identity sexual characteristics and social sexual differences should thank you so much for joining us with that perspective kevin much cheryl joining us from kenya where as we have heard the country is preparing for what could be a landmark ruling on the legality of same sex relations we appreciate it and if you think a is done i'm sorry kelly in berlin thanks for watching.

to. enter the complex. as well. just move the sides or get them over to my guess is here in london is. the women representatives to the venezuelan opposition leader and a self declared president won't fly so what happens next the conflict. stops a lot of.

earth a home for saving google india's tell stories of creative people and innovative projects around the world ideas to protect the climate and boost green energy solutions by global owing to gets beaten by a series of global 3 goals and on t.w. and on line europe a big idea but what's become of it and what will it look like tomorrow. t.w. gets ready for an in-depth look at the european elections asking the questions that matter. for european voters hopes for the parliament what challenges lie ahead. from way too long the publishers and the people in power have come away with not doing anything to fight the kind of crisis. how big european elections affect the

rest of the. expert discussion as it is or more. voters 1st hand. g.w. and as it all measures the european elections on may 26th on g.w. . the point is that people want change they want to go in the middle and surely they don't suddenly want you. they took you for student war i don't know if they took us for fools last month venezuela's opposition at some to that hole just moved yet to try to get the military have come over to their side and to unseat the government but the effort fails my guest this week here in london is vanessa no i'm a representative to the 3rd as well an opposition leader and self declared president won what happens next.