Injustice, discrimination and violence are hardly unheard of in India. But today, they are being normalised, enabled and even encouraged by the state, which is promoting an aggressive form of Hindu nationalism that looks increasingly like mob rule. India’s diversity and complex civilizational legacy are now under assault and it is shaking the very foundations of Indian democracy.
In August, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government stripped Jammu and Kashmir – India’s only Muslim-majority territory – of its special status, which had granted it considerable autonomy and split it into two "union territories" over which the central government now wields more direct control.
In order to stave off unrest, the government deployed thousands more troops to Jammu and Kashmir before announcing the changes. It then placed prominent local politicians, including former allies of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), under house arrest; enforced a curfew on residents; restricted movement into, out of and within the state; and imposed media and telecoms blackouts.
Months later, most Kashmiris still lack Internet access. Despite the blackout, sporadic reports paint a dark picture of repression by armed forces. Civilians have reportedly sustained severe injuries from crowd-control tactics (such as the use of tear gas and pellet guns) and thousands of locals – including children as young as nine – are languishing in jails.
Kashmir: Living with the curfew
Since the leadership in New Delhi revoked the special autonomy status, previously laid down in the Indian constitution, for the state of Jammu and Kashmir at the beginning of August, the region has been subject to punitive restrictions. By David Ehl
A unique state: Jammu and Kashmir is the only Indian state in which the majority of the population is Muslim. Since its independence in 1947, India has seen itself as a multi-ethnic state. However, this self-image is shifting towards a Hindu nation-state: Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist BJP dominates politics, and in May it once again became the strongest political force
Under house arrest: Since 5 August, a curfew has been in force for the people of the Indian province of Jammu and Kashmir. The central government has imposed it because it fears an uprising against it: the Hindu nationalist government has rescinded the special status of the majority Muslim region and extended its control over the state
Information blackout: Internet and telephone lines are dead. If you are lucky, you may be able to make a quick phone call to a few government agencies. Many have not heard from their relatives since the curfew began. A handful of local newspapers nevertheless continue to be published, albeit under adverse conditions – and they are quickly sold out
Behind bars: not all Kashmiris are at home, like this family in Srinagar. Police reported 300 arrests last week, partly as "preventative measures". According to Reuters, there are rumours of 500 people being arrested. Activists distributed a video of an 11-year-old boy reporting alleged police violence in custody – and the existence of even younger detainees
Tears of despair: Jameela, the mother of 28-year-old Koran teacher Irfan Ahmad Hurra, reports in tears that her son was arrested on 5 August. "I don't know what he is accused of. We don't know where he is." She said he was ill and needed medication. According to his family, Hurra had been in custody in the past, accused of causing unrest and property damage
It's good to be a soldier...: While the Indian soldiers can move freely, the more than four million inhabitants of the Kashmir Valley are officially not even allowed to go shopping in the city. The Indian army has cultivated a strong presence in the region for years. In the days before the announcement at least 10,000 additional soldiers were transferred to Kashmir
Everyday life in a state of emergency: photos like this give the appearance of normality despite the blockade. Most inhabitants of the region have experienced such curfews several times, for example in 2008, 2010 and 2013. Back then there were mass protests against the Indian government, with curfews being imposed as a result – but never as extensive as today: it is the first time that the landline telephone network has been switched off
Where are the customers? The provincial capital Srinagar with its one million inhabitants is actually a lively place. But because of the curfew, it's not just these bakers who lose the customers for their goods. Only for the Muslim Eid festival were the inhabitants allowed to go shopping more extensively. The curfew leads to supply bottlenecks, even for medicines
In Srinagar, residents now refer to their location as an "open-air prison": in some places there have been demonstrations, which the police are said to have dissolved with tear gas – but this is not officially confirmed. Many Kashmiri are increasingly frustrated about "haalat" – "the situation". One man told a news agency that his mobile phone was only good for throwing at soldiers
Resentment under wraps: journalists who were able to talk to the local population reported increasing frustration. Phrases like "we will fight against India" are often heard. Many people exchange information about where uprisings could take place. There have long been armed rebels in the region fighting for free Kashmir. In 2018, 256 of them were killed
The long arm of New Delhi: While the Kashmiris remain at home, they fear that their region may change and that they may become a minority: The special status abolished by the BJP government prevented investors from the rest of the country from settling in Kashmir. Days before the announcement, Hindus were removed from the region, but in the long run they could have a major impact
Is Kashmir on the brink of new violence? The children who stand with these soldiers only carry toy guns – but in the region the fear of real armed violence is great: Pakistan, which also claims to be the whole Kashmir region, sees a "danger for world peace". That is why the third riparian, the People's Republic of China, has now, at Pakistan's request, brought the issue before the UN Security Council
What price human rights?
Yet, rather than defend the rights of Kashmiri citizens, India’s Supreme Court has postponed hearings on relevant pleas. As for the rest of India’s population, they have largely ignored, accepted, or applauded the assault on Jammu and Kashmir.
In the north-eastern state of Assam, another horror unfolds. In August, authorities released their jurisdiction’s National Register of Citizens (NRC), which excluded nearly two million people who could not provide proof of their names or parents’ names in the electoral rolls before 24 March 1971 – an arbitrary date essentially directed at identifying Muslim immigrants. Many of these now-stateless people have been sent to detention camps, where they live in appalling conditions.
Betraying the project’s xenophobic aims, its architect, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, has called these people – many of whom were born in Assam or whose families have lived there for decades – "termites", his term for illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. He has also promised that the BJP government "will pick up infiltrators one by one and throw them into the Bay of Bengal."
In this case, instead of pushing back, India’s Supreme Court has actively instigated and aided the process. It now watches as the BJP government builds detention camps across the country, in preparation for the programme’s nationwide implementation – a process that is likely to be even more aggressively anti-Muslim.
While the NRC implicitly targeted Muslims, some Hindus were caught in the crossfire. That's one reason the government was so keen to pass its new Citizenship Amendment Act, which makes Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, Sikh, Parsi, or Christian refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan eligible for Indian citizenship. Muslims are excluded.
Constitution under fire
Though the bill was blatantly unconstitutional, it had no problem clearing Parliament – both the Lok Sabha (the lower house of Parliament) and the Rajya Sabha (the upper house) – to become law. The Act, which defines citizenship on the basis of religion, has since sparked protests across India.
Yet Muslims are not the only group facing discrimination and violence in India today. Hindu nationalists have also targeted the long-marginalised Dalits, the lowest-ranked group in India’s rigid caste hierarchy. In 2016 alone, more than 40,000 crimes against members of lower castes were reported. And yet last year, the Supreme Court triggered major protests by weakening the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, designed to protect lower-caste communities.
Moreover, India continues to fail its women, who face high rates of sexual violence. Victims who report the crimes committed against them often suffer far harsher punishments – including harassment, job losses, further violence and even death – than the perpetrators. Legal processes are slow; authorities often treat victims poorly; and justice is rarely served, especially if the accused is powerful or well connected.
Just this month in Uttar Pradesh, a 23-year-old woman who had reported being gang-raped last year was set on fire while heading to a court hearing. Among the attackers were two of the five accused men, who had been released on bail. She died a few days later. Since then, two more rape survivors have been killed in Uttar Pradesh.
Mob justice on the rise
Even when perpetrators are punished, it may look more like mob justice than the impersonal application of the rule of law. The recent gang rape and murder of a young veterinarian near the southern city of Hyderabad is a case in point. Initially, local police failed the victim through apathy. When her family attempted to file a missing person’s report, they resisted taking action at all, before sending the family to another police station, because the victim’s last known location was in that jurisdiction. Several hours passed before the search began.
After four men were accused of raping and murdering the young woman, however, there was a massive public outcry, including calls by prominent women to lynch the rapists. Under pressure, police quickly rounded up the accused, took them under a bridge and shot them dead. (The police claimed that the men had tried to grab their guns, forcing them to shoot.)
Such extrajudicial killings are being widely hailed in India. Due process and the rule of law are not nearly as satisfying, it seems, as quick revenge. Meanwhile, no one is addressing women’s lack of safety, or the impunity of other acknowledged rapists who have more political power.
India’s rapid descent into xenophobia, violence and irrationality – much like support for populist leaders and causes elsewhere – has an important economic dimension. Declining demand, employment and consumption have left many feeling insecure and frustrated. But it takes politicians to channel these emotions into nationalism and to embolden the nationalists to commit violence. Now that the BJP has done so, is it able – or willing – to exorcise the many demons it has unleashed?
Jayati Ghosh
Jayati Ghosh is Professor of Economics at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, Executive Secretary of International Development Economics Associates, and a member of the Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation.
