In the last decade, Prime Minister Modi has transformed India into a security-conscious state. Indian hardliners have welcomed security-driven policy; leading the national state of affairs, which guides India towards a Hindu Rashtra. The overwhelming focus of Modi government on defence and security makes India a revisionist state not only in the region but across the globe.
India’s desire to dominate South Asia through coercion is what Prime Minister Modi and hawks in New Delhi aspire for. In its pursuit of the military as well as economic dominance over South Asia, Gandhian principles have long been thrown out the window. However, India’s revisionist approach is not confined to the defence sector. Rather, it has penetrated deep into the foundation of the statehood.
India’s revisionist approach at the regional level is seen as a stepping stone towards its global ambitions.
Since its independence from the British rule, India has been trying to occupy territory, expand its military, and develop its economy all to be recognised as the global power. In South Asia, India, under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, is trying to exert and expand its influence over regional countries. It has not only contributed to the frustration of its neighbours, such as Nepal and Bangladesh but also heightened tensions along the relatively peaceful borders with these countries. The BJP-led India has followed a policy of confrontation with almost every neighbouring country.
With the help of the West, India has long been expanding its military power. India’s rapid expansion of its military capabilities by introducing nuclear-powered submarines, its intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) and its modernisation of sea-based nuclear deterrent indicate India’s growing efforts for global influence through military means.
India possesses long-range nuclear-capable missiles such as Agni V, with a range of 5,000 km, which allows it to cover the entirety of Asia, parts of North Africa, Eastern Europe, and Russia. The possession of such weapons of mass destruction indicates India’s global aspirations. But the Agni-V is not the real danger and is only being seen as a stepping stone towards completing the Agni-VI ICBM, which is rumoured to be in its final phase of development. The Agni-VI can potentially travel more than 12,000 kilometres and is supposed to have the ability to carry several independent nuclear warheads – and a manoeuvrable re-entry vehicle (MaRV) capability.
On the conventional front, India, under the “Make in India” platform, is diversifying its military hardware. Mighty industrial giants, such as TATA, have already stepped into the manufacturing of arms and ammunition for the Indian army. Besides, several other conglomerates have inked various MoUs with global war-tech giants such as Lockheed Martin. This overwhelming expansion began when the BJP government came into power. The government led by PM Modi has pushed for massive imports of arms and greater indigenisation of its defence industry. Subsequently, India remained SIPRI’s top arms importer for many years.
India’s revisionist approach at the regional level is seen as a stepping stone towards its global ambitions
With its “Make in India” initiative, and by stating that India must build up its defence capabilities, the country wants to reach the point where no other country “dares cast an evil eye.” Today, with its current military means, India is capable of bombing any capital in the world within a few minutes, from Moscow to Washington DC. Such a level of revisionism will provide India with a bargaining chip at the global level in the long run.
There have already been immense concessions given to India by the Western masters. From 2008 nuclear accord to entry into elite missile club, such as Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), and Wassenaar Arrangement, India now has a legal say in almost every strategically significant multilateral arrangement.
As a result of its revisionist policies, India seems to be in a perpetual state of crises within itself and with other regional countries. The recent China-India crisis along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), a territorial dispute with Nepal, and a hot Line of Control (LoC), India has embroiled itself in border skirmishes. A revisionist state has its own cost. It invites animosity and fragility as those with little influence over others try to gain more power to change their standing in the world order.
Even though India enjoys overwhelming concessions at the global level, its appetite for more power is never-ending. As a result, its revisionist policies have become a great cause of regional anxieties. Such an approach has led entire South Asia towards instability. India, which sees itself as the only policeman in South Asia, has further diminished the prospect of regional integration and cooperation. If India continues to follow such policies, it will not only lose its friends in the region but sooner, all states within South Asia will gang up against India.
The writer is an Islamabad-based freelance writer