IDEOLOGICAL TRANSFORMATION IN INDIAN FOREIGN POLICY UNDER NARENDRA MODI: AN ANALYSIS OF HINDUTVA IDEOLOGY AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR PAKISTAN

Abstract

This research paper examines the ideological transformation of Indian foreign policy under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with a specific focus on the role of Hindutva ideology in shaping India's strategic posture toward Pakistan. Since Modi's rise to power in 2014 and his subsequent re-election in 2019 and 2024, Indian foreign policy has undergone a significant shift from its historically secular, non-aligned foundations toward a more assertive, Hindu nationalist framework. The paper argues that Hindutva ideology rooted in the concept of Hindu cultural nationalism advanced by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and reflected in the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) political agenda has increasingly permeated India's foreign policy discourse and decision-making. Drawing on constructivist international relations theory, this paper analyzes how national identity, ideological framing, and domestic political imperatives under the BJP government have redefined India's bilateral relationship with Pakistan. Key policy decisions examined include the surgical strikes of 2016, the Balakot air strikes of 2019, the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), all of which carry significant implications for regional stability and Indo-Pakistani relations. The paper concludes that the infusion of Hindutva ideology into foreign policy represents a structural departure from the Nehruvian tradition and poses enduring challenges to peace, diplomacy, and conflict resolution in South Asia.