2024 holds a record number of 64 national elections worldwide making it an unprecedented election year. As powers shift worldwide, 2 of the many elections include the monumental US presidential election and the Indian prime minister election. As India’s influence grows, becoming the most populous country in the world, and being declared “The World’s Fastest Growing Major Economy'' soon after, its global presence grows to the level of foreign powers like the United States. Interestingly enough, both democracies grapple with a similar, pervasive issue: Religion.

These two nations, professedly secular in their constitutions, confront an increasingly ambiguous separation between church and state, whether it’s Hinduism in India or Christianity in America. Minority groups are increasingly marginalized and alienated, facing vast disparities that compromise the promises of pluralism. Nations must be cognizant of the convergence between religion and state, or it will inevitably lead to the destruction of their “democracies.” Religion has no place in democracy.

This article is the first installment in a three-part series on religion’s growing power in government, with this particular piece focusing on India.

Hindu and Christian nationalists, in India and the U.S. respectively, may have motivations that coincide more than expected. Delving into the history of each country is critical to understanding how and why their current national identities overlap with religion.

The land India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh occupy today was once a single state (“The British Raj”) under British Parliament rule from 1858 to 1947. Using India’s diversity to their advantage, they classified Indians based on their religion or caste to promote structural violence between varying groups. The British had conducted a census in 1881 as a part of their strategy to “divide and rule.”Although the direct effect of Britain’s religious categorization of Indians is unclear, tensions undoubtedly rose with the end of British rule in 1947. Muslims became worried about living in a Hindu majority country and their fears foreshadowed their reality: they would be made foreigners in their own homes.

As a new government emerged with distinct Muslim and Hindu parties, violence sprouting across the nation mirrored the political fragmentation. The existence of these individual parties characterized by religion encouraged division and opposition. An impartial government structure was proposed by the British cabinet whilst the British Raj waited for the transfer of power from Britain. Shortly after both parties agreed, the Indian National Congress (the “Hindu” party) stated they would have the power to change any initial agreements. The All-India Muslim League sensing unprecedented domination commenced “Direct Action Day.” A day that would result in protest if Muslims were not granted a separate state. The All India-Muslim League announced, "We do not want war. If you want war, we accept your offer unhesitatingly. We will either have a divided India or a destroyed India." No compromises were made and their promise was fulfilled. On August 16, 1946 (Direct Action Day), the “Great Calcutta Killings” lasted 4 days with almost ten thousand lives lost. Members from both parties formed the communal riots. The party responsible remains controversial, but it is painfully clear that the reason for any of this violence was a desire for and fear of religion within the government.

With constant disagreements, Muhammed Ali Jinnah, later known as Pakistan’s founder, proposed a partition to Mohandas Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s eventual founders. To the British, Congress, and the League, it was clear a united nation was irreconcilable. British lawyer Sir Cyril Radcliffe used religious demographics and geographical factors to draw the borders, creating two entities: India and Pakistan. Over 16 million citizens began emigrating to new frontiers, of which up to 2 million died. Some British soldiers who witnessed Nazi camps during the Holocaust claimed “Partition’s brutalities were worse: pregnant women had their breasts cut off and babies hacked out of their bellies; infants were found literally roasted on spits.” Even after the territory was delineated, violence continued over certain villages and religious sites across the borders. Parting such a diverse nation was not simple; it caused severe displacement and identity struggles for individuals. Not only does conflict over land from 1946 still occur in places like Kashmir, but violence persists today among groups labeled as mutually exclusive. Extreme Hindu groups continue to villainize Muslims, with the discrimination now ingrained across generations. The continued stereotypes and generalizations instill the prejudice that was once used to split South Asia. The effort to advance Muslim alienation through anti-interfaith marriage laws and citizenship issues specifically targeting them is both disgusting and unacceptable. These groups are driven by rigid religious identities instilled by respective countries. Countless lives may have been saved if there had been a greater emphasis on shared values rather than on divisive differences.

Religious conflict and violence are nothing new or abnormal for India. Even the Prime Minister’s party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has a history of its members inducing religious-based violence against minorities. Some of the documented instances include BJP politicians stating Muslims should be “set ablaze,” that Hindus and Christians should not eat at Muslim-run restaurants, and BJP state legislator Gyan Dev Ahuja even encouraged Hindus to kill Muslims if they were suspected of killing cows. Each of whom were said to be investigated and prosecuted but many instances like these go unbothered because of the major support for oppressive parties like BJP. These politicians are only further enhancing and projecting the anti-Muslim rhetoric.

In 2020, a new temple began to be built in Ayodhya, a sacred city in Uttar Pradesh known to be the birthplace of the Hindu God Ram. Ayodhya Temple was unjustly built on the ashes of a mosque, inaugurated by none other than India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a BJP member. Babri Masjid mosque was built in Ayodhya in 1528, and soon after the British fled India in 1949, Hindus snuck a Hindu statue of God Ram into the mosque. The Hindus claimed that the mosque was laid in the exact location where God Ram was born and therefore the land was rightfully theirs to build a temple. There were disputes over who the land should rightfully belong to. On December 6, 1992, the BJP party gathered one hundred thousand followers at the mosque. It wasn’t long before the mosque was demolished. The police, acting under the authority of the BJP, did nothing. This destruction perpetuated extreme violence throughout the country with riots from Mumbai to Ahmedabad. Over 2000 lives were lost because of the greedy decision to destroy the mosque. This controversy led to a Supreme Court case, which took 27 years to establish a ruling. In 2019 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi was reelected, the Supreme Court came to a decision. Although the destruction was declared an illegal act, a unanimous vote decided that the land would be given to the Ram Temple Trust, a Hindu organization funded to build a temple in this locus, and to “ensure equity” to the Muslims granted the claimants land to build a new mosque acres away. It is a justified assumption to say if it had been Muslims who destroyed a Hindu temple this would not have ended with the same Supreme Court decision. The obvious religious bias in the government creates a crack in its foundation of democracy.

Prime Minister Modi has purposefully made his political strategy revolve around Hinduism with a campaign strategy that implicitly suggests only those who vote for him are true Hindus, thus leveraging religious identity to secure the majority vote leaving the Muslim minority invisible. Modi and the BJP have made it their mission to restore Hindu’s glories and this Ram Temple was used as another campaign tool. The Ayodhya Temple, although only 70% completed, was inaugurated by PM Modi on January 22, 2024. With the Prime Minister Election being April-June of this year it is not a coincidence, “Today's date will go down in history," Mr. Modi said after the event. "After years of struggle and countless sacrifices, Lord Ram has arrived [home]. I want to congratulate every citizen of the country on this historic occasion." The temple is expected to draw in 50 million visitors yearly, already garnering millions of visitors daily. The opening of this temple not only marks the beginning of a Hindu nationalist agenda and systematic violence against Muslims but emphasizes the BJP party’s partisan intentions and acts as a key part of Modi’s reelection campaign. Since PM Modi was elected into power, Muslim hate crimes have increased by 90% and states with a majority BJP government have had more Muslim hate crime incidents. Allowing religion to be a part of politics opens the door to bias and manipulation which groups like the BJP can easily take advantage of.