Mohammad Hassan Shaykh al-Islami; Omid Babelian
Volume 4, Issue 15 , March 2021, , Pages 57-75
Abstract
The present article explores the discourse of extremist Hindus after Gandhi. Gandhi’s discourse, in his lifetime, was to become the most important political driving force in India. ...
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The present article explores the discourse of extremist Hindus after Gandhi. Gandhi’s discourse, in his lifetime, was to become the most important political driving force in India. Having been assassinated by an extremist Hindu, function of Gandhi’s discourse has, too, faced many ups and downs in the context of historic developments and following competing discourses and debates, all of which had played a role in shaping India’s foreign policy. In this sense, the significance of taking into consideration Gandhi’s discourse is being felt more than ever. The present paper examines the effective historic developments, which have contributed to shaping India’s foreign policy, basic debates, and discourses based on Hinduism in India, all of which define Gandhi’s discourse as their otherness. The main question of the research is “What discourses and to what extent have they been envisaged in India’s foreign policy?” The assumption of the research is as follows: “With respect to Gandhi’s legacy, India has pursued idealistic policies. However, idealism has managed to shift to realism in the face of extreme nationalism discourses. Gandhi’s discourse deviates from practical politics. Thus, Hindu-based political parties, such as Bharatiya Janata Party as the main otherness of Gandhi’s discourse, dominate India’s foreign policy.”
