New Delhi:
Far-right leader Geert Wilders was the surprise winner of the Dutch elections, after a late surge that catapulted his anti-EU party to a resounding victory over his mainstream rivals. Wilders’ party, the anti-Islam Freedom Party, now has 37 seats in the Dutch parliament and is on track to become the largest party in the house. But he is still far from his dream of becoming prime minister, which will require his party to exceed the magic number of 76 through a coalition.
Wilders said his focus would be on reducing immigration. During the campaign, he toned down his anti-Islam rhetoric and instead spoke about issues such as the cost of living and immigration, leading analysts to describe him as “Geert Milders”.
The 60-year-old has been a fixture in Dutch politics for decades. He started his career as a member of former Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s liberal faction, but broke away to serve as an independent lawmaker before founding the anti-migrant Freedom party, known in Dutch as the PVV.
He faces death threats because of his anti-Islamic views and has been under strict police protection since 2004. In 2020, a court found him guilty of insult for comments he made about Moroccan immigrants, but the judges imposed no punishment.
In 2022, Wilders had also defended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nupur Sharma over her comments on Prophet Muhammad.
“Nupur Sharma is a hero who spoke nothing but the truth. The whole world should be proud of her. She deserves the Nobel Prize. And India is a Hindu nation, the Indian government is obliged to vigorously defend Hindus against Islamic hatred and violence. he had said in a tweet after Nupur Sharma’s comments on a TV debate sparked a row.
The government tried to distance itself from the comments by describing them as “views on fringe elements”. She was also suspended as spokesperson of the BJP.
The Supreme Court also noted that Ms Sharma’s comments “inflamed emotions across the country”.
“The way she stirred up emotions across the country. This lady is single-handedly responsible for what is happening in the country. She actually has a loose tongue and has made all kinds of irresponsible statements on TV and set the whole country on fire. Yet she claims to be a lawyer with ten years of experience… She should have immediately apologized to the entire country for her comments,” the court said in a ruling.