An eloquent portrait of contemporary India that reveals how the Hindu nationalist movement threatens the country’s political and economic future
This fascinating account of India’s remarkable political and economic transformation over the past quarter century braids together background, reportage, and analysis to chronicle how the world’s most populous nation, once a pluralistic parliamentary democracy synonymous with poverty, evolved into a Hindu majoritarian polity and an aspiring economic superpower.
While acknowledging the vast gains for the Indian economy in this century, Sadanand Dhume raises concerns about the rise of an extreme brand of Hindu nationalism that now controls governmental power and dominates society in much of the country. Dhume delves into the roots of Hindu nationalism and explains how this once-fringe ideology came to eclipse its rivals.
Shedding light on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s disturbing clampdown on the freedoms of association and expression and minority rights, Dhume not only questions the conventional Western view of India as a liberal democracy that will act as a counterweight to autocratic China, but also argues that the decline of democratic ideals imperils India’s prospects for enduring peace and continued economic advancement, with vast repercussions for the United States and the rest of the world.