‘Modi-fied’ India

List of Figures

Chapter 3: Who is an Indian

Figure 1: Map shows two major migrations into India in the last 10,000 years

Figure 2: Coloured regions of the map showing places where Indo-Aryan languages were spoken [Source: Wikipedia]

Figure 3: Coloured regions of the map showing places where Dravidian languages were spoken [Source: Wikipedia]

Figure 4: Inscription on a Jewish synagogue in Cochin. It has been there for hundreds of years. [Source: Wikipedia]

Figure 5: Map of the Delhi Sultanate under Muhammad bin Tughlaq (d. 1351) [Source: Wikipedia]

Figure 6: Map of the Mughal Empire Under Aurangzeb (1707) [Source: Wikipedia]

Figure 7: Map of the British Raj in South Asia in 1914 [Source: Wikipedia]

Chapter 4: Why Partition

Figure 1: Lord Louis Mountbatten, the last viceroy of India, meets with Indian leaders (Nehru and Jinnah) to discuss the 1947 partition in this undated photo. [Source: Max Desfors/AP]

Chapter 7: The ‘Apartheid’ System Within and Beyond India

Figure 1: A map of the Hindu Kush, marked with a red dot. [Photo: Wikiquote]

Figure 2: The divisions of the Mongol Empire and main Asian polities, c. 1300. [Source: Wikipedia]

Chapter 12: Whither India?

Figure 1: Abul Kalam Azad, Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel, and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi at a meeting of the All India Congress Committee in Bombay, 1940. [Source: Mahatma Gandhi Photo Gallery 1933 & 1948]

List of Abbreviations

AAGSP All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad

AASU All Assam Student Union

AI Amnesty International

AL Awami League

ASI Archaeological Survey of India

BBC British Broadcasting Company

BC Before Christ

BCE Before Common Era

BGB Border Guards Bangladesh

BJP Bharatiya Janata Party

BNP Bangladesh Nationalist Party

BSF Border Security Forces (India)

BUET Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology

CAA Citizenship (Amendment) Act (India)

CBI Central Bureau of Investigation

C.E. Common Era

CIA Central Intelligence Agency

CIRF Commission on International Religious Freedom

CM Chief Minister

CPI Corruption Perceptions Index

CMLA Chief Martial Law Administrator

CPC Countries of Particular Concern

DC District of Columbia

DEA Drug Enforcement Agency (USA)

EIC East India Company (England)

EPR East Pakistan Rifles

GDP Gross Domestic Product

GHI Global Hunger Index

HRS Hindu Rashtra Sena

HRW Human Rights Watch

IAS Indian Administrative Services

IMF International Monetary Fund

INC Indian National Congress

INDIA Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance

IPS Indian Police Service

ISI Inter-Service Intelligence (Pakistan)

JNU Jawaharlal Nehru University

JRC Joint River Commission

MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology

MLA Member of the Legislative Assembly (India)

MP Member of Parliament

NCERT National Council for Educational Research and Training

NDA National Democratic Alliance

NGO Nongovernmental organization

NRC The National Register of Citizens

NWF North-West Frontier

NWFP North-West Frontier Province

NYU New York University

OC Officer-in-Charge

PM Prime Minister

POW Prisoners of War

PPP Pakistan People’s Party

(Also) Purchasing Power Parity

RAW Research and Analysis Wing (India)

RSS Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh

SAARC South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation

SC Scheduled Castes

ST Scheduled Tribals

UK United Kingdom

UCSB University of California, Santa Barbara

UGC University Grants Commission

UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

UPenn University of Pennsylvania

USA United States of America

USC University of Southern California

USCIRF US Commission on International Religious Freedom

USD United States Dollar

VHP Vishwa (also spelt Vishva) Hindu Parishad

WHO World Health Organization

Preface

India is the most populous country on our planet. According to IMF projections and government economic reviews, India is on track to overtake Germany and become the world’s third-largest economy over the next few years.¹

Despite such economic progress, something has gone terribly wrong in this country of more than 1.4 billion people. India’s minorities feel unsafe and insecure today as never before. Daily harassment and lynching of Muslims have become the norm in today’s India.

India’s once-proud claim to being a free democratic society has collapsed on many fronts since Narendra Modi’s ascension to power. India’s electoral democracy has become an electoral autocracy; Modi has transformed the country politically, socially, and religiously in an irreversible way. How true are such assertions?

The writing of this book on India was suggested by Professor M. Rashiduzzaman. As a keen student of history, I could not ignore a proposal from someone regarded as a doyen in sub-continental political science. Little did I know how difficult and absorbing the task was going to be, given the fluid nature of Indian politics. Its daily reports of pogroms explain why the country has been designated as a country of particular concern five times in a row by none other than the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). Washington-based Genocide Watch has also warned that India is on the brink of an impending genocide of Muslims. Can anyone who cares about South Asia ignore what is going on inside India, touted as the largest democracy on our planet?

This work covers Indian history and its political development from the time of Emperor Ashoka to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India is yet to develop its genuine nationhood that gravitates people of all castes and creeds to a common vision with a sense of belonging. My work argues that the dream for Akhand Bharat or an EU (European Union) type setup will remain a nightmare until people living not just inside India but also those living in other parts of South Asia feel equal, safe, and secure despite their ‘otherness’.

This book tries to fill the gap in our understanding of modern India, which is a far cry from the popular image of India in the minds of many Westerners. This book is particularly intended to stir up some sober debate/analysis on many contentious issues. Its appeal is not limited to only Westerners, but more so to Indians living at home and abroad who do not like to see the spectacular rise of India stifled or defeated. They will understand what could happen if India’s social fabric is torn apart by the fascist ideology unleashed by Modi’s government.

Mir Muhammad Taqi (1723–1810 C. E.), an Urdu poet of the eighteenth century Mughal India and one of the pioneers who gave shape to the Urdu language itself, wrote:

How could I tell my tale in this strange land?

I speak a tongue they do not understand!

As a Bangladeshi-born Muslim, writing about Hindu-majority India, I am keenly aware of my limitations in reaching out to the wider Hindu audience, as alerted by the above couplet. Yet, it is necessary to have a dialogue so that we can understand each other’s perspectives, concerns, and fears for the greater good of South Asia, which is home to nearly a quarter of the world’s population. Hopefully, a good outcome would result from an honest rendering of this attempt to understand and analyse the other side.

My hope is that after reading this book, many Indians will become a voice of change, willing to right the wrongs done in their name at the individual and collective levels.

This work has benefited from the writings, ideas, and information from many people. I want to acknowledge and thank the following people without implicating them in any errors of fact or interpretation that remain in the text. They are, in no particular order: Abdul Karim, David Ludden, R. S. Sharma, Romila Thapar, Irfan Habib, K. Ali, Richard Eaton, A. K. Majumdar, Christophe Jaffrelot, Amartya Sen, Saraphin Dhanani, Debashish Roy Chowdhury, Noam Chomsky, Harsh Mander, Badri Raina, Ram Puniyani, Arundhati Roy, Hermann Kulke, Dietmar Rothermund, Peter Jackson, Raziuddin Aquil, William Dalrymple, Rajeev Kinra, Vinay Lal, Sameena Dalwai, Abdur Rehman, Nazeer Ahmed, Sri Chinmoy, Abbas Ali Khan, Jim Masselos, Muin-ud-din Ahmad Khan, Fazlul Hassan Yusuf, Shamsul Alam Belal, Shafi J. Ahmed, Golam Ahmad Murtaza, Audrey Truschke, Mushirul Hasan, Anisuzzaman, Jaswant Singh, Romesh Dutt, A. R. Desai, A. R. Mallick, Abul Kalam Azad, Harun-Or-Rashid, M. H. R. Talukdar, Mustafa Malik, Joya Chatterji, Ayesha Jalal, K. M. Mohsin, G. Allana, A. G. Noorani, Yasser Latif Hamdani, Stanley Wolpert, Ashwin Desai, Goolam Vahed, Soutik Biswas, A. B. M. Ahmed, Sk. Rafique Hossain, Taj Hashmi, Yasmeen Niaz Mohiuddin, K. N. Panikkar, M. Athar Ali, B. N. Pande, K. Jamanadas, D. N. Jha, Apoorvanand Jha, Dean L. Gano and Nazrul Islam Siddiqui.

Acknowledgement is also made to the editors and publishers of Dawn, Al Jazeera, The Friday Times, Al-Balagh, The Wire, Eurasia Review, Ovi Magazine, CounterCurrents, The Milli Gazette, and the Media Monitors Network for allowing me to cite relevant passages in this work.

The editorial staff at Peter Lang, have been steadfast in seeing this work published. I appreciate all their hard work, patience, and encouragement.

In this work, I have greatly benefited from the proofreading of Safdar Hafeez, Azmat Ashraf and Masud Alam, who did meticulous jobs in reviewing the manuscript. I am indebted to them for their patience and thoroughness. I am also appreciative of my son Hassan’s formatting of the manuscript. Last but not least, thanks to my wife Eva for everything else.

Shanti, peace, salam.
Habib Siddiqui
Pennsylvania,
USA.

CHAPTER 1 Introduction

India is full of variety and contrast. It is a land of riddles. There are 1.42 billion people living in an ocean of contradictions.

According to the 2011 national census, Hindus constitute 79.8 % of the population, Muslims 14.2 %, Christians 2.3 %, and Sikhs 1.7 %.¹ Groups that together constitute fewer than 2 % of the population include Buddhists, Jains, Zoroastrians (Parsis), Jews, and Baha’is. In government statistics, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs officially identifies as Hindus more than 104 million members of Scheduled Tribes – indigenous groups historically outside the caste system who often practice indigenous religious beliefs – although an estimated 10 million of those listed as Scheduled Tribe members are Christians according to the 2011 census.

India is the seventh-largest country by area (1.269 million square miles), bordering China, Bhutan and Nepal to the north, Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east, Pakistan to the west, and the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea to the south. It was the fifth-largest economy in 2023. It has recently surpassed Japan to become the fourth-largest by nominal GDP, behind the United States, China, and Germany. It is currently the fifth-largest consumer market in the world, but is on track to become the third-largest by 2026, overtaking both Germany and Japan. According to the World Bank, India’s GDP was $3.91 trillion (USD) with an annual growth rate of 6.5 % in 2024.²

India’s sustained economic growth has been accompanied by a marked rise in its political influence internationally. This enhanced stature is reflected in its active role within the G20. India has joined the multinational Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) based in Bahrain. India has also strengthened security links with the United States through the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (known as the Quad) and myriad other agreements.

Despite India’s impressive overall economic expansion, its GDP per capita remains relatively low, standing at US$ 2,694 in 2024, according to the latest World Bank figures. At the same time, India continues to carry a high public debt burden. The general government debt stands at 81.3% of GDP in 2024, according to IMF data. Fiscal pressures persist as well: India’s fiscal deficit remains elevated at around – 7.92% of GDP in 2024.

India also faces high unemployment (8.9 % based on a thirty-day moving average on 25 June 2024),³ rising income inequality. Thirteen per cent of the population, that is 183 million people, are below the poverty level, making less than $2.15 a day (2017 PPP). On the Human Capital Index, India scored only 0.5 on a scale of 0 to 1 (the higher the better). Nearly half the population does not have safely managed sanitation services. Eighty-three of the hundred cities with the world’s worst air pollution in 1923 were in India. Across India, 1.3 billion people, or 96 % of the population, live with air pollution level that is seven times higher than World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.⁴ A 2020 WHO-UNICEF-Lancet Commission report called ‘A future for the world’s children?’ ranked India 131st among 180 countries in the category of child survival.

Every year, some eight million young Indians come into the job market. Of these, less than half are employed, compared with two-thirds in China. The situation is far worse for the religious minorities, who, even with multiple graduate degrees, are often not hired.⁵

Ninety per cent of India’s workforce has insecure jobs – without regular pay, stable hours, or benefits. In 2022, more than ten million people applied for 35,000 jobs with one of the country’s largest employers, the railways. The job selection process is not transparent. India’s female workforce stands at 25 % compared to 71 % in China, according to the Oxford Economics report.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been criticised for promoting crony capitalism.⁶ There are more than 270 Indian billionaires, with ninety-four new billionaires added in 2023 alone.⁷ A new study from the World Inequality Lab, however, finds that income inequality in India is the highest in the world and starker than in the U.S., Brazil, and South Africa. India’s top 1 % have access to a staggering 40 % of the national wealth. The gap between India’s rich and poor is now so wide that by some measures, the distribution of income in India was more equitable under British colonial rule than it is now. Unless income and wealth inequality are closely tracked and challenged, India risks sliding to Plutocracy, the authors of the study say.⁸

India is also a country of contradictions. Behind the veneer of such economic progress, something is terribly wrong in the political sphere in this country. Although Indian democracy has always been associated with an adjective like ‘illiberal’ or ‘flawed’ since the time of Jawaharlal Nehru (d. 1964), India has turned into an increasingly ‘apartheid’ and ‘authoritarian’ democracy under Narendra Modi’s premiership that began in 2014.

Bills have been increasingly passed in the parliament without any discussion. The power of the numbers, that is, the majority, has been misused to strangle all dissenting voices. In December of 2023, 141 Indian lawmakers – ninety-five from the lower house (Lok Sabha) and forty-six from the upper chamber (Rajya Sabha) – were suspended. The opposition dubbed the government’s move a ‘mockery of democracy’. Important legislation to replace the existing criminal laws was passed later in parliament without two-thirds of the opposition members present in the House and without any debate, undermining the essence of parliamentary democracy itself. Critics of the government say that the Modi government had misused investigating agencies and other institutions to target opposition leaders.⁹