Institutionalized Statism And India’s Social Fabric – OpEd
India, once celebrated as a secular and pluralistic society, is increasingly becoming a nation defined by religious intolerance and communal divisions. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership, Hindutva, the political ideology advocating for Hindu dominance, has gained unprecedented momentum.
This shift has disproportionately affected India’s Muslim population, leading to systematic discrimination, state-backed violence, and social exclusion. The rise of such policies threatens India’s secular framework and has triggered global concerns about the erosion of human rights and minority safety in the world's largest democracy.
In the past decade, Modi's government has systematically implemented policies that marginalize Indian Muslims, portraying them as outsiders within their own country. Two Indian states, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, recently passed a policy mandating that restaurants publicly display the names of all their employees. While seemingly innocuous, this policy has been viewed with concern by Muslim business owners, who fear it will result in targeted attacks, economic boycotts, and even violence by extremist Hindu groups that operate in these states.
These fears are not unfounded. The increasing influence of Hindutva has empowered hardline groups to enact mob violence, often with little to no government intervention. Modi's administration has promoted laws and policies that disproportionately target Muslims and other religious minorities, including Christians, Sikhs, and Dalits. Religious conversions, interfaith relationships, the wearing of the hijab, and even the slaughter of cows have all been restricted under the guise of "protecting Hindu values." Such measures not only embolden Hindu extremists but also deepen social divisions, undermining India's foundational principle of secularism.
Economic boycotts against Muslims have become a disturbing trend in India. In states like Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, Muslim business owners face systematic exclusion from the economy, with calls from extremist groups urging Hindus to refrain from buying goods from Muslim-owned businesses. These boycotts are a powerful tool of economic disenfranchisement and create a climate of fear and isolation. The situation worsened with policies like the employee disclosure mandate, which provides extremists with an easy means to identify and target Muslim workers and businesses.
Moreover, Muslim exclusion from housing in Hindu-majority areas, particularly in states like Gujarat, has led to modern-day apartheid-like conditions. In some communities, Muslim single mothers have been denied housing based on their religion, illustrating the depth of institutionalized discrimination that exists today. These acts of exclusion are not just societal but are often state-sponsored, as seen in the repeated demolitions of mosques and Muslim shrines under the guise of development projects.
One of the most visible forms of oppression against Indian Muslims is the targeted demolition of mosques, shrines, and dargahs. Between 2015 and 2024, several Muslim religious structures were demolished across India, including remnants of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, the Ahmad Shah Masjid in Ahmedabad, and multiple shrines in Delhi and Gujarat. The reasons cited by the authorities range from urban development to anti-encroachment drives, but the pattern of destruction is too consistent to ignore.
Beyond economic and social exclusion, violence against Indian Muslims has escalated under Modi’s tenure. The aggressive rise of the Hindutva agenda has emboldened religious extremists to commit atrocities with impunity. One particularly concerning instance was when BJP member Gyan Dev Ahuja openly incited violence by advocating for the killing of individuals involved in cow slaughter—an issue that has become a flashpoint for religious tensions.
This violent rhetoric is reflected in a spike in communal clashes across India. The Washington-based India Hate Lab (IHL) reported that in 2023, there were nearly two anti-Muslim hate speech events per day, with 75% of these events occurring in BJP-ruled states. Coupled with the state's failure to intervene or punish perpetrators, this has created an environment where mob violence is increasingly normalized, especially against Muslims and other religious minorities.
Yet, despite this global attention, the Modi government continues to push policies that further marginalize minorities. The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) were introduced with the clear aim of disenfranchising Indian Muslims. In Assam alone, over 700,000 Muslims are at risk of losing their citizenship, exacerbating fears of statelessness and mass displacement.
The rise of Hindutva under Modi's regime has created an increasingly hostile environment for India’s Muslim population, with violence, discrimination, and exclusion becoming the norm. As these policies continue to unravel the fabric of India’s secular identity, it is imperative that the international community holds the Indian government accountable for its actions. Economic boycotts, mosque demolitions, and state-backed violence against religious minorities are not merely domestic issues—they are violations of human rights that demand global scrutiny and action. If left unchecked, the Hindutva agenda threatens not only India’s Muslims but the stability and unity of the nation as a whole.