, Columnist
India’s Identity Is More Hardline Hindu Than Ever
Key state elections indicate support for Modi shows no signs of softening. Prepare for more religious-driven laws if he wins a third term.
Another big win.
Photographer: Prakash Singh/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014, his party had three key ambitions: To remove the special status of Kashmir, India’s only Muslim-majority state; build a Hindu temple on the site of a centuries-old mosque; and introduce a single code to replace the maze of civil laws that govern personal issues like marriage, divorce and guardianship.
Each one is deeply controversial, seen by critics and minorities as an attempt to Hinduize India’s diverse 1.4 billion population, not the necessary step toward further unification the Bharatiya Janata Party would have us believe.