Chairman Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and member national assembly Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Monday slammed Modi’s aggression in the region on social networking website Twitter. Analysts are mulling over the implications of the rise of Hindutva expansionism in India.
Bilawal said that the Indian Prime Minister Modi’s aggressive actions and posturing in South Asia and Kashmir led to the India – China standoff in Ladakh. India is currently at loggerheads with all the neighbors i.e. Pakistan, Nepal, and China. The aggressive foreign policy posture seems to be the result of the internal fascist policy which demands constant external threat to keep PM Modi’s support base intact.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also said that none of India’s neighboring countries are currently on good terms with them due to the current government’s ideology based on Hindutva expansionism.
The tweet read: “Modis aggressive policy in Kashmir & whole South Asia has led to India-China standoff. None of India’s neighbours are on good terms with New Delhi anymore. Won’t end well for regional peace. Hindutva expansionism must not be allowed to destabilize region during a pandemic.”
Modis aggressive policy in Kashmir & whole South Asia has led to India-China standoff. None of India’s neighbours are on good terms with New Delhi anymore. won’t end well for regional peace. Hindutva expanstionsim must not be allowed to destabilize region during a pandemic.
— BilawalBhuttoZardari (@BBhuttoZardari) June 22, 2020
The Indian army on June 16 confirmed that 20 of its soldiers were killed in clashes with Chinese troops at a disputed border site, in a major escalation of a weeks-long standoff in the western Himalayas.
DG ISPR slams India for Hindutva expansionism
Recently, Director-General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Babar Iftikhar said that “India’s attempt to link coronavirus with Muslims and Pakistanis has failed badly.” The DG ISPR clarified how is the Indian government committing violence against the Muslims under the cover of COVID-19 and promoting Hindutva.
Recently, Indian army chief General MM Naravane had alleged that Pakistan was ‘exporting terror’ during the coronavirus crisis while India was helping others and its own people. The Hindustan Times had quoted Navarane as saying, “It is very unfortunate that at a time when the whole world and India are fighting the menace of this pandemic, our neighbour continues to foment trouble for us.”
Read More: Hindutva mindset, stubbornness kindle chaos & conflict: FM Qureshi
Addressing those remarks, DG ISPR said that the allegations were a “Reflection of India’s internal failures and increasing frustrations and demoralization”. He added that the “Fire of oppression, hatred and race that India had lit in Kashmir has now spread to the rest of the country.”
Hindutva expansionism: The rise of Islamophobia in India
The COVID-19 outbreak has exacerbated Islamophobic attacks and the country’s largest minority, Muslims — who account for over 14% of the country’s 1.3 billion population — have been attacked and accused of spreading the disease.
BJP, inspired by fascist ideas of RSS, believes that the Muslims are responsible for the spread of the virus. Notably, not only mainstream media or social media sites are encouraging violence against Muslims, even the government of India is adding to this campaign in a very subtle manner. It recently sent a memo to the government of West Bengal state expressing concern that it was failing to implement the lockdown strictly in certain areas. It mentioned seven localities in the state, of which six are distinctly Muslim dominated.
It is important to note that Indian politics is being shaped by the extremist politicians and strategists who intend to wipe out the Muslim minority from India.
Read More: Hindutva led India on a way to destruction under Modi
Dr Moeed Pirzada, a prominent political commentator and columnist, recently noted that “Ram Rath Yatra, Mandal Commission, Ram Janma Bhoni movement, Attack on Babri Mosque, Demolition of Babri Mosque, Bombay riots, Nuclear Explosions of 1997, Kargil Conflict, attack on Indian Parliament, Mobilization against Pakistan, Gujrat Pogroms, Mumbai terrorism everything in one or the other was skillfully utilized in redefining Indian narrative and politics moving it ever closer to the realization of a Hindu Rashtra which now exists in reality though it still needs a legal and constitutional cover”.