The Rise of Hindu Nationalism
India is Reimagining Its Place in the World
When globalization began last century, marked by the proliferation of international political alliances, the establishment of common markets, the exponential growth of the internet, and an unprecedented sense of global interconnectedness, a consensus emerged among many naïve thinkers that the age of nationalists was over and would be replaced by the triumph of the global citizen. The Berlin Wall had fallen, the Soviet Union and Marxist-Leninism had been relegated to the pages of history, and threats to the International World were easily vanquished, as evidenced by the American-led international coalition that effortlessly defeated Saddam Hussein in 1991.
Presently, it is easy to write of this perspective as incredibly naïve but, at the time, such thinking was bolstered by a succession of Western-endorsed trade agreements forged in the latter decades of the 20th century, alongside the diminishing influence of labor unions within Western economies, the integration of the People's Republic of China into the World Trade Organization (WTO), and leaps in technological innovation. The consequences of a rapid expansion of inexpensive labor and the integration of automation technologies displaced many jobs in the West. Instead, they saw the rise of Asian economies, most notably the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of India.
Less than eighty years after attaining independence from the United Kingdom, India’s ascendancy over the past three decades has been remarkable. In 2022, the World Economic Forum revealed that India had overtaken the United Kingdom in size, making it the fifth-largest economy in the world—an achievement that would likely have been considered inconceivable a hundred years ago. India’s modernist reforms are the driving force behind such exponential growth. In the 1990s, India embarked on economic liberalization by dismantling the License Raj, a burdensome system of bureaucracy that hindered businesses' ability to operate without government licenses and requirements. By removing these barriers to entry, India began opening its markets to foreign investors and privatizing state-controlled industries, unleashing a capitalist spirit that captivated its people. India's demographics are incredibly beneficial to its growth and survival; its population is young and highly educated, giving the country an advantage in a global economy that is less dependent on manual skills and increasingly knowledge-based.
India will play a role this century as a preeminent power in Asia, and both the People's Republic of China and the United States pit themselves against each other in an influence game of chess, trying to one-up the other in courting India’s friendship. Holding one of the best land armies and navies and status as a nuclear power, India is poised to leave a stamp on geopolitics. But rather than looking outward, India’s road to power requires them to look inward and confront worsening sectarian woes that threaten to unravel such rapid progress.
Religious nationalism has risen worldwide, fueled primarily by a revolt against globalism. India is worthy of particular scrutiny for two reasons of equal importance: it has the largest Muslim minority population in the world and is the largest democracy in the world. One out of six people in the world are Indians living in India; the implications of Indian political developments affect the lives of a statistically noteworthy number of people. Not to mention that, given its newly found status as a global power, repercussions of such actions ripple like water throughout the rest of Southern Asia and the World.
Democracies, historically speaking, thrive on the cultural homogeneity of a population; it is quite easy to submit to governance of those of similar cultures, languages, and religions. But in the globalized world, mass migration and other challenges have sparked a populist backlash in all corners. Turkey, for instance, faces challenges to its secularism from an increasingly young and fervent Islamist population, egged on by Prime Minister Recep Erdoğan. Indonesia’s Islamic Nationalist government unanimously passed a law that criminalizes sex outside of marriage. In India, the Bharatiya Janata Party, currently in power, courtesy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reigns as a right-wing political party adhering strictly to Hindutva, described by V.D. Savarkar, who was a national author during the Indian Independence movement, as “a person who regards this land of Bharat Varsha, from the Indus to the Seas as his Father-Land as well as his Holy-Land, that is the cradle of his religion, that is the land of his prophets, of his faith, that is the land of his pilgrimage, which is the basis of his culture and civilization, which is his Sindhusthan.”
Savarkar's views are that of a Hindu identity that extends not only in a religious manner but also concerning the geographical, cultural, and sphere of civilization itself; it is demanded of all who consider India their ancestral and spiritual homeland. Religious nationalist movements, obviously, differ from country to country. But they generally adhere to a series of consistent principles: a government-mandated adherence to morality, as defined by the religion, and a basis of national identity based on the religion, exemplified by the views of Savarkar, that exclude minorities, those not in the majority religion.
Following the dissolution of the British Raj and the end of imperial rule from London, the Indians authored a secular constitution that, while not necessarily mandating separation of church and state, highlighted the famous “principled distance.” The subcontinent was rife with religious strife between Muslims and Hindus, a struggle that would shape India’s post-colonial trajectory. The dissolution of the British Raj set the stage for a lasting animosity between India and Pakistan, which is as much religious as it is geopolitical. In 1947, after the partition of India, marked by its seismic demographic shifts and political realignments, the new Pakistani state marched to war against India, determined to annex Jammu and Kashmir by any means. The first of many Indo-Pakistani wars eventually drew to a close through the intervention of the newly founded United Nations, which brokered a ceasefire. While Pakistan was created as a separate Muslim-majority nation so that the Raj’s Muslim Indian population would have a home, many Muslims still elected to remain in India.
Indian politicians have often carefully toed the line between the “principled distance” and full-blown religious nationalism. Still, recent developments have called into question the validity of the separation of church and state. On January 22nd, 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Nodi opened a Hindu temple built on the ruins of a historic mosque. This move elicited such a celebration that theaters broadcasted the event live with complimentary popcorn. In response to the momentous event, several states declared the day a public holiday, leading to the closure of India's stock markets. Mr. Modi proclaimed, "Today our Lord Ram has come. After centuries of waiting, our Ram has arrived," adding, "Our Ram idol will not stay in a tent anymore. Our Ram idol will stay in a divine temple now." Mr. Modi’s glaring omission of any acknowledgment or empathy towards the nation's substantial Muslim population, deeply aggrieved by what they perceive as a profound desecration of a sacred site, speaks volumes to the current state of Indian politics.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which first rode to electoral success during the globalization of the 1990s, did so by championing Hindutva, emphasizing the interdependence of Indian and Hindu culture. Such a blatant display of religious nationalism challenges India's “principled distance” and longstanding promise of “unity in diversity.”
Savarkar’s writings were often followed as almost biblical texts, warning against secular democracy as another deceptive measure by the British and West. Both secularism and democracy are viewed as shackles of colonialism, meant to dilute the influence of the Hindu populace. Jains, Sikhs, and Buddhists are accepted as true Indians alongside the Hindu populace, according to this worldview, as their religions accept India as both "fatherland and holy land." Conveniently absent from this criterion of accepted religions is Islam, whose holy sites are in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Middle East—Islam is singled out as its sacred geographies lie outside of India. The alienation of Muslims in India, with 14 percent of the population, approximately 172 million people, has the third-largest number of Muslims in the world, could foster a deadly ethnic conflict. If marginalized, these communities will become more susceptible to radical ideology, in particular more radical forms of Islam, that could escalate into an armed Jihad, literally a ‘struggle,’ against this nationalist state, which would undermine Indian society and threaten their global aspirations.
However, the nationalists argue that the Hindu identity is essential to societal stability and international stature. There are varying spectrums among the nationalists, with some advocating for Hindu cultural preeminence- akin to the status of Christianity as the 'de facto' basis of law in the United States and Western Europe. In contrast, others wish for a theocracy similar to that of Saudi Arabia.
There are global implications to be had from a Hindu nationalist India. These implications are not necessarily disruptive; India's foreign policy aims have aligned very closely with the West's, particularly the United States. But another. India’s resurgence of cultural nationalism has boosted its standing on the global stage, shining as a nation confident in its heritage and values. Such Hindu values have translated into a more decisive governance model; India’s bold economic reforms and initiatives have uprooted systemic corruption and turned the former colony into a lucrative destination for foreign investment. The proud do not bend their knees easily; Prime Minister Modi has already undertaken aggressive foreign policy actions against China and maneuvered through geopolitics with the swagger of a superpower. Such principled stances against despots, without question, are refreshing and commendable developments.
But concerns about the marginalization of India’s sizable minority communities are legitimate, and one should always be weary of undermining secularism, as seen in Turkey. Democracy is a fragile thing, and the world’s largest democracy would be destabilized should communal violence and discrimination against minorities become the norm. The collapse of another democracy would be detrimental to the world, especially in light of the seemingly concurrent rise of authoritarianism and democratic backsliding.
India's next general election is to be held no later than May of 2024 - and the implications could not be more dramatic. Because the truth is that Secularism and Hindu majoritarianism are on the ballot - not the respective candidates. Should the BJP continue in governance and Mr. Modi be reelected, India will thoroughly repudiate the secular and diversity-based Indian state that was established in 1947. Another BJP victory sends a clear message to the rest of the World: India is destined to play a role on the global stage, but it desires to conduct itself as a Hindu majoritarian state whose strength will, supposedly, be rooted in the similarity of culture and religion and not in the diversity that had previously been thought of as its foundation.