Communalism in Indian Politics

Aishwarya Ayushmaan

Communalism in Indian Politics

- Aishwarya Ayushmaan

Introduction
It is dangerous to exploit religion for practical purposes1 Communalism, a term coined by the British in the mid-nineteenth century2, in its barest sense connotes a feeling of prejudice towards a particular community. The Indian political context is replete with the use of the term communalism, so much so that any discussion on Indian politics would not be pragmatic without including the communal aspect. It is however interesting to note that communalism which seems so deeply engrained in the Indian politics is only a modern British import.3 Moreover, contrary to the commonsensical understanding, communalism finds its base not only on religious divisions but also on socio-economic, ideological and psychological factors. This essay traces the historical development of communalism, explains why it is a false consciousness explores the causes giving rise to it and finally ends with the recent developments in the Indian scenario.

Communalism and the British policy

Communalism is a belief that people belonging to the same religion share common social, political, cultural and economic interests and identities.4 However, it is a phenomenon which was seemingly nonexistent prior to the advent of the British rule. 5 Throughout the medieval period the prominent Indian communities, mainly the Hindus and the Muslims co-existed

S.P.Nanda, Communalism and the Partition of India, pg 191, Freedom Movement and Constitutional Development in India, Dominant Publishers & Distributors, New Delhi, 2004 2 Partha Pratim Basu, Religious Cleavage, Politics and Communalism in India, Pg 260, Politics India The State Society Interface, edited by Rakhahari Chatterjee, South Asian Publishers, New Delhi, 2001. 3 Supra n1, pg 186 4 Ibid 5 Id

peacefully, albeit with their own religious differences.6 It was only with the colonisation of India and a change in the power structure did communalism began to manifest itself in the Indian society.7 For the British, the realisation that they could exploit the differences between the two communities came only with the aftermath of the revolt of 1857.8During the revolt of 1857, Hindus and Muslims had fought as a single entity against a single cause. 9 This, however, alarmed the British and in the words of Bipin Chandra, An effort was made to set region against region, province against province, caste against caste....10 Thus they watered the seeds of communalism which existed in the Indian society. Adding to this were the revivalistic tendencies of the 19th century. The reformers of both the religions portrayed each religion to be historically different from each other thereby inadvertently contributing to the British cause.11 Since the days of Lord Dufferin, British policies began to show a clear inclination towards Muslims.12 The divide between Hindus and Muslims grew so strong that in 1890, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan proposed special privileges for Muslims.13 The Aligarh Muslim University which had earlier been without any religious agenda now became the seat of one. Sir Syed Ahmed Khans dissatisfaction with the Congress was in lieu of the Congress being a predominantly Hindu organisation.14 The partition of Bengal in 1905 further strengthened the communal air by providing the Muslims an impetus to continue their political activities. In 1906, a deputation led by Aga Khan, demanded a separate electorate for the Muslims which was given to them in the form of Morley-Minto reforms.15 On 30th December 1906, the All India Muslim League was formed.16 The separatist policies of the Muslim league achieved new heights during the Khilafat movement when the Muslim participation in politics reached its zenith. In such communally charged atmosphere, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh was formed which aimed at countering the Muslim cause by movements such as Suddhi and Sangathan.17 The Muslim League declared 16th August, 1946 as the Direct action Day in furtherance of its goal to create the state of

Id Id 8 Id 9 Id 10 Id, pg 187 11 Id 12 Id 13 Id 14 Id, pg 188 15 Id, pg 190 16 Id 17 Id, pg 191

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Pakistan.18 The day witnessed extreme levels of religious fanaticism with people killing each other mercilessly. Finally, the Congress conceded to the partition of India as being the only solution to stop the killings.19 The partition was accompanied by communal riots resulting in mass killings across the border. All these events lay the founding stone of communalism in India.

Communalism: A false consciousness?

Although communalism seems to emanate from religious differences, yet one must pause and think whether there are any socio-economic and psychological reasons attached to it. Bipan Chandra argues that communalism is a predominantly middle class phenomenon which has its origin in the limited economic means and opportunities.20 The twentieth century was a period of meagre economic opportunities and increasing unemployment. The British economy created a large middle class who found it difficult to find jobs or to fall back on agriculture. The lower middle classes were in extremely critical situation and certain urgency was needed for them to defend their class position and identity. The common mans ego under the constant fear of losing ones identity coupled with hopeless frustration got triggered off by any religious issue leading to riots. In Bipan Chandras words, The petty bourgeois ego got tied up with the cow or peepal tree protection and music before a mosque.21 Moreover, the scarcity of opportunities and resources led to an unhealthy and tough competition among individuals. Every possible means was used to succeed and thus, to give their struggle a wider fighting ground, the middle classes used other group identities, such as caste, region, and religion to improve the individuals capacity to compete through a group.22 The competition for jobs among individuals turned into a competition between two communities. Therefore, one might say that the religious interests were only a deception against the real selfish interests of the classes. It was a portrayal of unity among a community, who despite its own socio-economic disparities, endeavoured to achieve its socio-political aspirations. Thus, communalism can be said to be a false consciousness.

18 19

Id, pg 198 Id, Pg 200 20 Bipan Chandra, Communalism as False Consciousness, Politics in India, edited by Sudipta Kaviraj, Oxford University Press, 1997 21 Ibid, pg 300 22 Id, pg 301

Communalism and Pluralism

As explained above, communalism is not merely a religious phenomenon but is also a strategy of the ruling classes to divide the masses for gaining maximum advantages and reaping political and economic benefits.23 The problem of communalism also arises in India due to the fact that India is a pluralist society with a heterogeneous population. The main characteristics of pluralism are: Groups within the parent political unit exist independently and autonomously. These groups constitute a larger society, thus implying that there is no single dominant way of life.24 Moral choices are relative and not absolute, i.e. it depends on person to person.25 Groups have their individual lifestyles which are related in many ways to other groups.26 Powerful group loyalties in the background of scarce economic resources leads to inter group rivalry and conflict.27 All these characteristics of pluralism make communalism an inevitable by product.

Religious Cleavages and Communalism

Cleavages refer to the criteria in terms of which the members of a society or community are divided into vertical or horizontal groups or clusters.28 Political cleavages are those which divide people for important political consequences. Religion, in this aspect is an important social and political cleavage which assumes special importance in a multireligious country like India. Applied to the Indian context, the communalism has four distinct features, namely a) Religion forms the most important cleavage in India.

23 24

A.S.Narang, Indian Government and Politics, Gitanjali Publishing House, New Delhi, Edition 2000 Ibid 25 Id 26 Id 27 Id 28 Supra n(i) , pg 259

b) Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs etc. are different and distinct communities which constitute the Indian society. c) Followers of a particular religion share common economic, political, social and cultural interests. d) Modern politics in India is largely based on the distinction between different communities. It would be prudent here to recapitulate the emergence of communal overtones within different communities. The Muslims, though they were eager to get familiar with Indias new secular and democratic regime, continued to attach importance to safeguarding the Shariat.29 They supported the Congress with the belief that it would safeguard their interests without discrimination. However, with the Congress failing to perform, parties like the Muslim League (Kerala) and Jamaat-I-Islam (North India) started gaining prominence. The emergency period during the reign of Indira Gandhi further deepened the communal divide. Among all this, incidents like the Shah Bano case30 and the Babri Masjid demolition served as polarising factors for increasing the divide between Hindus and Muslims. The Sikhs had already conceived a separate Sikh state prior to Independence. But serious attempts to realise this vision was made during the reign of Indira Gandhi by Sant Bhindranwale. The matter was finally resolved when members of Operation Blue Star entered the Golden temple and eliminated the Sikh militants. Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguard and the ensuing anti-Sikh riots gave a new dimension to the communal atmosphere in India. The Hindu communal mobilisation also dates back prior to Independence. The RSS and the Hindu Mahasabha had pro-Hindu policies. Slogans such as Akhand Hindustan portrayed that they equated Indian culture to that of Hindu culture.31 In 1998, the BJP came to power and its policies were mostly based on communal lines. Groups like VHP and Bajrang Dal gained prominence during this period. The demolition of the Babri Masjid and the Godhra riots served as crucial events for mobilisation of Hindu forces.
29 30

Supra n2, pg 262 Ibid, pg 263 31 Id, pg 265

Rajni Kothari32 argues that the rise of communalism in India is due to the decline of political institutions. With the decline of Congress party in India, it became reluctant to directly and efficiently deal with the problem of communalism. One main reason for this was that communalism found its support base in the middle class population whom the Congress depended on for votes. During Indira Gandhis leadership, questions of ideology took a backseat while the communal principle of mobilisation came in quite handy to manipulate members.33 Thus, it was the Congress, according to Kothari, who damaged the social and political fabric of India by resorting to communal idiom of pandering to the Hindu majority for political gains.34

The Indian version of Communalism

Secularism, as understood in the Indian context is slightly different from that employed in other countries. In India, secularism does not mean aloofness of the State but positive interference with religious practices. However, this version of secularism became problematic due to two reasons. The legislature had to involve itself into interpreting strictly religious matters (e.g. the amendment of the Hindu Personal Law) and secondly, reforming one religion meant putting a pressure on the other religions also to be reformed. In many cases this was not possible and led to greater communal divide. Adding to this, political parties like BJP accused the Congress of being pseudo secular, that is pandering to the Muslim vote bank, thereby challenging the definition of secularism itself and deepening the communal divide.

Conclusion
Recently, while the country was waiting with bated breath for the Ayodhya verdict, fears of a communal rift came to fore. The way most parts of the country was held in curfew exhibited the deep apprehension and fear which people have in their minds. It was a demonstration of how communalism can deeply affect the psyche of a nation. Communalism today is deeply rooted in India, so much so, that even a tiny spark can lead to a catastrophe. Incidents like the Godhra riots are testimony to this fact. It would be untrue to say that the situation cannot be changed but it would require strong political
32

Rajni Kothari as quoted in Partha Pratim Basu, Religious Cleavage, Politics and Communalism in India, Pg 270, Politics India The State Society Interface, edited by Rakhahari Chatterjee, South Asian Publishers, New Delhi, 2001 33 Ibid pg 270 34 Id pg 271

leadership, change in the mass mentality and the improvement of socio economic conditions. Even then the effects of communalism can only be subdued. To say that we can eliminate communalism, at present, seems a farfetched proposition.