Hindutva has been “The” guiding philosophical framework for the Ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in Indian Politics. Now, we would analyze if, ‘Hindutva’ is also a guiding principle of Modi’s Foreign Policy.

But before it, it is necessary to understand the concept of ‘Hindutva’. Hindutva or Hinduness is a prominent form of Hindu nationalism in India. The term Hindutva was first used by Chandranath Basu in 1892 and later the term was popularized by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in 1923. Hindutva ideology is spread through Hindu organizations like Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), the Bhartiya Janata Party or the so called ‘Sangh Parivar’. It has been mainstreamed into Indian Politics since 2014.
There is a clear distinction between the terms ‘Hindutva’ and ‘Hinduism’ as these two terms are not similar to each other. Hinduism refers to an Indian religion and it is the world’s third largest religion. While, on the other hand, Hindutva refers to a concept of “Indian Cultural Identity”. It basically combines a geographically based religious, cultural, and national identity into one form. In other words, it has been described as “A way of life”.
In the landmark case of Ramesh Praboo v Prabhakar Kunte, 1996, also known as the Hindutva Case, the Supreme Court held that the pleas made by appealing to the terms “Hindutva” or “Hinduism” during an election campaign did not necessarily constitute a corrupt practice in violation of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RPA) since the terms ordinarily refer not to religion but only to “a way of life”.
Coming back to the discussion of inter-relationship between International Relations and Hindutva, it is observed that Hindutva’s outlook at International Relations is similar to Realism which means pessimistic reading of human nature by focusing on maximizing National Power, both hard power and soft power (i.e. spiritual).
By analyzing the horrifying incidents of URI, Pathankot and Pulwama attack, it can be observed that Prime Minister Modi’s Hindutva Foreign Policy is coercive.
Thus, it can be highly observed that the influence of unique Hindutva’s brand of realism can be seen in Modi’s foreign policy quite clearly when it comes to Pakistan and China.

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