‘Less liberal, more assured & assertive’ — influential global voices on Modi’s election-eve India

‘Less liberal, more assured & assertive’ — influential global voices on Modi’s election-eve India

New Delhi: In the latest issue of Foreign Affairs, Rohan Mukherjee, assistant professor of international relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science, explains how India’s foreign policy has become more assertive under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He also sheds light on how India’s global role has become a major political issue but warns that “a nationalist foreign policy does not always serve the national interest”.

Ravi Agrawal, the editor-in-chief of Foreign Policy, in his latest essay, shares his views about India becoming “a less liberal but more assured nation” under Modi’s reign. He opines that “an illiberal, Hindi-dominated, and Hindu-first nation is emerging, and it is challenging — even eclipsing — other ideas of India, including Jawaharlal Nehru’s”.

The Economist in this piece explores the role of the Indian diaspora in politics back home and why it supports Modi. The article draws a contrast between the BJP’s “success in courting the diaspora” with “activities abroad that are as efficient as its electoral machine at home” and the Congress’s efforts that “have fallen flat”.

CBS Canada reported that a five-member panel testifying in a public inquiry on foreign interference in Canada said it was “not made aware of” Indian interference in the 2021 Canadian general election. The Canadian intelligence service last week submitted declassified documents alleging that India was one of the two main state actors “most involved” in election interference. Canadian PM Justin Trudeau testified at the inquiry on 10 April.

Writer and columnist Mukul Kesavan recommends four books to understand modern India in Foreign Policy. The four titles include India Is Broken: A People Betrayed, Independence to Today by Ashoka Mody, Price of the Modi Years by Aakar Patel, City on Fire: A Boyhood in Aligarh by Zeyad Masroor Khan, and Midnight’s Borders: A People’s History of Modern India by Suchitra Vijayan.

What’s brewing in the Indo-Pacific 

What are the takeaways from Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s US visit and meeting with President Biden? Read this report in The New York Times to know how the two countries have improved defence cooperation to counter China.

Who is Truong My Lan, the Vietnamese real estate tycoon now sentenced to death, and what was she convicted of? This BBC report shares the details and explains a $12.5 billion fraud that has come under the lens.

(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)