India observed such principles for its first 30 years of independence, though it did make some previously mentioned exceptions that earlier breached the separation. But since 1980, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, her successor son, Rajiv Gandhi, and the currently-ruling BJP have all played the religion game. There is now talk of Hinduizing the state and its constitution because, after all, “India has always been a Hindu civilization and its population has an overwhelming 80 percent Hindu majority.” Following the BJP’s surprising victory in Gujarat led by the infamous Modi, it announced a three-fold platform for campaigning in future elections.

The platform includes a “ban on religious conversions” aimed primarily at non-Hindus, including North American Christians, who would woo dalits away from their religious birthright; a “uniform civil code” aimed at eliminating the longstanding Muslim exemption, though more intended to restore a sense of Hindu dominance than to correct a religion-based state policy; and a revocation of the Indian Constitution’s Article 370, which makes mostly Muslim Kashmir out-of-bounds to Hindus interested in purchasing land or starting businesses. All three measures would add kerosene to fires already well underway.

Fanning the Flames

India is now faced with the dual threats of “Talibanization” in bordering Pakistan and Kashmir and “Saffronization” by the BJP and Hindutva at home. Hindu-Muslim violence is a function of mutual mistrust and stereotypes. In many ways, the violence feeds upon itself as each episode triggers a new response, and the ultimate causes are lost in the miasma of a history that is dialectically construed. Interestingly, the Indian national fl ag is composed of three stripes: orange for the saffron of Hinduism, green for Islam, and a stripe of white in the middle. The white is a neutral symbol of the kind of secular state that is so crucial to India’s future. As I tiptoed across India’s religious “mindfield,” my fingers were crossed in the hope that wiser heads would prevail. Talk of a constitutional change to “Hinduize” India has abated temporarily, but another resounding victory by the BJP would no doubt bring it back. As an officially Hindu state, India would see violence on an unimaginable scale. When minefields explode, the toll can be catastrophic.