New Delhi: Global media continues to puzzle over the question of Sikh separatism in India, and why the Indian government, which Canada has accused of attempting to take matters into their own hands on Canadian soil, would take such a risk at all.
A report in The New York Times says that the “Sikh cause” of “Khalistan” fizzled out decades ago within India. Yet, the Indian government frames the movement as a threat to national security.
“The Indian government defines terrorism broadly, to include any actions it sees as imperilling the country’s security by sowing discord or instability,” the report offers by way of an explanation. “India has long taken a no-holds-barred approach to stamping out movements it considers a terrorist threat, including the Khalistan cause, as well as left-wing and Indigenous insurgencies.”
Another factor that makes Sikh separatism such a sensitive issue is its connection to Pakistan—India’s “archnemesis” according to NYT. Analysts informed them that Pakistan aided the Khalistan movement to encourage instability in India.
Experts have also pointed to how widespread drug addiction and unemployment in Punjab gives the movement “fertile ground”, which is something India wants to discourage.
A report by The Economist highlights how technology has ushered in a new way to worship in India. It quotes a data provider as saying that there are nearly 1,000 faith-based Indian startups that offer remote access to religious services.
“The emergence of such services is a result of the rapid proliferation of smartphones in India,” the report reads. Christians and Muslims have global apps like YouVersion Bible and Muslim Pro, and Hindu startups have a long way to go to catch up. “But unlike those monotheistic faiths, Hinduism’s pantheon of gods allows businesses to roll out more services,” a startup founder tells The Economist. “Offerings can vary by temple but also by god.”
This business model runs on India’s religiosity. “Such faith has always been a defining feature of Indian society, but in recent years it has also become a more conspicuous one. That is partly because of economic growth, which has given Indians more spending power,” the report reads. “Where Indians would once purchase pictures for their household shrines, today they splurge on idols and jewellery.”
The government is also supporting the business of religion directly. The BJP’s Pilgrimage Rejuvenation And Spiritual Augmentation Drive and other such schemes are spending millions on building religious infrastructure. Religious tourism is also booming.
“For true believers, a visit to a real temple is still preferable. And the financial opportunity from the bricks-and-mortar temple economy far exceeds the app-based equivalent,” The Economist writes. But India’s religious market is estimated to be worth around $60 billion annually—and so today’s startups “may see their faith richly rewarded”.
But the optimism of religious startup founders isn’t shared by investors at large. The Financial Times reports that foreign investors have pulled out more than $10 billion from India in October, adding to “growing concerns that the market’s huge bull run may finally be coming to an end as the economy slows”.
Indian shares have more than tripled since March 2020, but now seem to be lumbering “in the face of weak corporate earnings, signs of an economic slowdown and moves by the central bank to curb exuberant retail lending.”
Following October’s outflow, net inflows from international investors have dropped to just $2 billion. This means that foreign ownership of India’s stock market has dropped to a 12-year low.
“The cooling in sentiment also comes as China’s battered stock market enjoyed a stimulus-driven revival. Many overseas investors had been bullish on India while keeping positions in China low,” FT observes. “But when Chinese stocks soared on news of the stimulus, many reduced Indian holdings so as to increase their bets on China or miss out on the rally.”
India’s market in the last year has been primarily driven by domestic investors, but foreign investors may be concerned that even local risk appetite is getting saturated.
“Much now depends on whether Indian authorities take action to prevent a potential multi-year economic downturn,” FT quotes an investment agency as saying. The governor of the Reserve Bank of India has already said that a rate cut now would be too risky, even while indicating that it is open to easing its key policy rate of 6.5 percent.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)