Modi and the Reinvention of Indian Foreign Policy

by Ian Hall

Narendra Modi’s energetic personal diplomacy and promise to make India a ‘leading power’ surprised many analysts. Most had predicted that his government would concentrate on domestic issues, on the growth and development demanded by Indian voters, and that he lacked necessary experience in international relations. Instead, Modi’s first term saw a concerted attempt to reinvent Indian foreign policy by replacing inherited understandings of its place in the world with one drawn largely from Hindu nationalist ideology. Following Modi’s re-election in 2019, this book explores the drivers of this reinvention, arguing it arose from a combination of elite conviction and electoral calculation, and the impact it has had on India’s international relations.

Genres: India

236 pages, Paperback

Published October 1, 2019

About the author

I am Scottish, born in Edinburgh, and spent the first 41 years of my life, not far from my fair and bonnie "Athens of the North".
I now live in Topeka, Kansas, with my wife (bless her), no pets (don't like 'em), no children (all moved out), and with many gallons of home-made wine bubbling as I write.
My biggest acheivement to date (apart from the successful parenting of my darling daughter) is my published novel; "Opportunities: Jamie Leith in Darien."
I'm not confined by genres, having equal success in Historical adventure, Sci Fi, Fantasy, Horror and hard hitting gritty crime.
I watch far too much football (Don't even think of calling it 'soccer'.) and at times chase a dimpled ball along carefully manicured countryside, with a collection of calibrated, graphite-shafted sticks.
I play guitar and sing in a folk/rock band, and would love to have enough money to tour the world's archeological sites until I'm too old to walk.
I love to write, and enjoy literary challenges of all kinds.
My blog is; http://www.jamieleith.blogspot.com
My website is; http://www.ianhallauthor.com
Jamie Leith's website is; http://www.jamieleith.com
Thank you for your time.
Ian.

Reviews

[Debasis Dash · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was able to capture the journey of BJP and the emergence of right-wing political alternative in India, but it reads like an opinion piece that anything of rigorous research. It seems the author had a very sarcastic and preconceived notion, i.e. lowly, of anything that is not up to Nehruvian sophistry. There is a scant regard to understand the national politics with the complex socio-political issues as the context. In short it is an "armchair" analyst job.

[Imaduddin Ahmed · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book’s scope covers Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi’s first term in office, from 2014 to 2019, when it was published. It lays out Modi’s agenda for reinventing Indian foreign policy on Hindu nationalist principles. This translated into, for example, increased muscularity with Pakistan. His doctrine, if there was one, was an apparent shift towards realism, coupled with a focus on efficient and effective implementation. But Hall makes the case that rather than behave as a pragmatist or realist, Modi acts as a self-consciously transformational leader with a clear ideological agenda. Foreign policy delivered less in terms of building India’s power and influence than was aimed at. This was due to a lack of process and consultation and lack of focus on implementation. Moreover, Modi’s reinvention of foreign policy was undermined, Hall argues, by the upsurge in communal violence under Modi’s watch.
The impact on foreign relations was less important to Modi, however, than the appearance of making a positive impact on India’s foreign relations. While there is little concrete evidence that Indian voters choose their representatives based on foreign policy, the principal target of foreign policy messaging was domestic, not international; the author argues that Modi was convinced that personalising India diplomacy would prove electorally advantageous with his majoritarian right-wing base of supporters. He aimed to create the impression that if he as India’s representative was lauded and listened to by world leaders, then India itself must stand tall. Summits and bear hugs for world leaders were aimed at portraying himself as a statesman, elevated above the normal political fray. Polling shows that on the domestic front, Modi succeeded in making the majority of citizens perceive an improvement in India’s image abroad.