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PIOTRKŁODKOWSKI
IslaminIndia:
IdeologicalConflictsontheSubcontinentandTheirPolitical
andSocialConsequencesintheEarly21stCentury
TheIndiansubcontinentishometonearlyhalfabillionMuslims,or
aroundathirdofallfollowersofIslamglobally.InIndia,theirnumber
isestimatedat180million,orjustabove14%ofthecountry’stotal
population,1whichmakesthemtheworld’slargestreligiousminority.Their
relationswithIndia’sHindumajoritylargelydeterminesocialstabilityand
culturalcoherence(orlackofit)inthecountry,andisgreatlyinfluenced
bythesharedhistoryofbothcommunities.Thishistory,withitssymbolic
elements,hasbeenandcontinuestobeusedtodevisemoreorlessradical
ideologiesandpushspecificagendasincentralandregionalpolitics.Periods
ofrelativelypeacefulcoexistencewereinterruptedbybloodyconflicts,and
memoriesofthemaffectthepoliticalidentityofbothHindusandMuslims—
ifnotthewholerespectivecommunities,thenatleasttheirmostpolitically
activerepresentatives.Thetwo-waytensions,whiletendingtobeeasedby
thesecularstructuresoftheRepublicofIndia,itseconomicsuccessand
thegradualriseofcivicsociety,havebynomeansbeenremoved.Indian
Muslims,highlydiversifiedculturally,ethnically,andlinguisticallyasthey
are,buildtheirpoliticalpositioninthestateeitherinharmonywiththe
majorityofIndiansocietyor,increasingly,inoftenradicaloppositionto
theideologyofHindufundamentalism,whichoflatehasbeenconsiderably
gainingimportance.DevelopmentsinIndia,andespeciallyitscommunal
relations,alsoexertanimpactonNewDelhi’srelationswithMuslimnations
seenbytheIndiangovernmentaskeypartners,especiallyinitsenergypolicy.
1
2011censusdata,www.censusindia.gov.in.
ThePolishQuarterlyofInternationalAffairs,2017,no.1
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