Decades after a sacred mosque was violently demolished by Hindu nationalists, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has unveiled a brand new temple on the site, which has been at the centre of a centuries-long religious rift.

  • ohwhatfollyisman@lemmy.world
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    5 months ago

    i don’t see how this is going to play out in the long term, though. the right wing fervour in the country has been stoked primarily by this “mosque x temple issue”, and modi’s party has actually ridden this horse through the democratic process over the last three decades to “success” – yes, make no mistake, democracy has not failed in india. the majority of voters are really that fervent in their championing of “hindutva”.

    but with the denouement of this chapter, they will no longer have the temple as a north star. they will no longer have this major unifying factor. this, in a way, is terrifying simply because the go-to fallback of this government to rally their voters into line is aggression towards pakistan.

    with both countries pointing nuclear warheads at each other, this could have severe repercussions for the region and the world at large.