India’s National Policy and Relations with Neighbours

Although national or domestic policy and foreign policy of a state are two different things having separate jurisdictions with a clear-cut demarcation between the two, they, however, impact each other in a big way. Domestic policy are administrative decisions that are directly related to all issues and activities within a state’s border and covers a wide range of areas, including business, education, energy, healthcare, law enforcement, money, taxes, natural resources, social welfare, and personal rights and freedoms, while  a state’s foreign policy or external policy is its objectives and activities in relation to its interaction with other countries, whether bilaterally or through multilateral platforms.

But any major event of one field definitely affects the perception and working of the other and in case of a clash between the two, the democratic government of any country, normally, prefers to side with the domestic mood and popularity because it is bound to face a election in a very definite period in which the decision of the public becomes final. Thus, foreign policy is not immune from the impact of values, ideas, initiatives and upheavals. History has proven that the external ambitions of the state are far from homogenous, but the realm of the foreign policy is an ideological concept, a product of international dynamics and domestic attributes and hence, generated from within.

The influence of the domestic forms the basis of foreign strategy and correlation between both policy areas is one of great strength. In the context successful politicians mobilise and retain public support as a means of maintaining public office. As democracy encourages choice, the political parties focus on policy areas which reflect the opinions and values of the majority of the electorate. In case of the Indian government, its two decisions taken in August 2019, the abolition of Articles 370 and 35A and passing of the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act in December 2019, have cast a dark shadow on its relations with neighbours, especially Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

With Afghanistan, except during the brief regime of the Pakistan-supported Taliban, relations remained co-operative, based on mutual understanding. In the context needless to add here that both Pakistan and Bangladesh were parts of united India before 15 August 1947. In the division Pakistan comprised two wings, East Pakistan and West Pakistan, with a territorial distance of 1800 km. As a result of the general elections held in 1970, which were followed by a civil war there and ultimately dividing the nation in December 1971 which gave birth to a new nation called Bangladesh. In the whole process India played an active role and relations between the two started on a positive note. Relations with Pakistan almost all the time remained suspended due to negative developments and actions from both sides. In Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani became President in September 2014 and came to India in April 2015. Return visits were also paid by the Indian Prime Minister in December 2015 and June 2016 Kabul enjoyed the fruits of good relationship with India because Afghanistan, during his regime, wanted to reduce the country’s dependence on Pakistan, it moved seriously towards New Delhi. But later India was sidelined in the peace process held between Afghan Government and the Taliban, brokered by Pakistan.

After becoming Prime Minister, Narendra Modi visited Bangladesh in June 2015 and concluded a border agreement with his Bangladeshi counterpart, and in return Sheikh Hasina paid an official visit to New Delhi in April 2017 and registered several developments on matters of trade and security, but many other issues, including the migration of Bangladeshi and Rohingya refugees and effective tools to combat terrorism, remained unresolved. In relation to Pakistan despite Mian Nawaz Sharif’s attending the swearing-n ceremony of Narendra Modi in May 2014 and the sudden visit of the Indian Prime Minister to Islamabad in the last week of December 2015, the terror attack by Pakistan on Pathankot in January 2016, retaliatory surgical strike by India in September 2016, Pakistan’ Pulwama terror attack in February 2019 which took costly life of 40 CRPF personnel, India’s airstrikes at terror camps in Balakot in Pakistan, provided an environment not conducive for bilateral relations between India and Pakistan.

In fact, relations with all the three countries- Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan reflected a negative trend and perception due to the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, the dismemberment of Jammu and Kashmir, the enactment of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the threat to implement a nation-wide National Register of Citizens (NRC). In particular, relations with Pakistan remained the most hit and with two others partially affected. Although, the eruption of the covid-19 pandemic provided, once again, a chance to all countries of the region to come together and help each other in controlling and eliminating this life-threatening disease.

The abrogation of Article 370 and 35A directly affected India- Pakistan relations for a longer time to come, but the passing of disputed Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in December 2019, jeopardised India’s relations with three of its neighbours, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, while a large number of people inside the country also started protesting the Act. It was because of one of the provisions of the CAA that gives citizenship to persecuted non-Muslims such as Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians, from Bangladesh, Pakistan, or Afghanistan, who entered India on or before 31 December  2014.

In particular, this religious categorization for obtaining citizenship was opposed because it was against the secular character of the Constitution of India. In addition, this CAA was attached with a National Register of Citizens (NRC) which will be carried out in all India. As the constitutions of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh provide for a specific state religion, the said Act extends protection to such people facing religious persecution in these countries. In contemporary history there are several examples of forced conversion, torture, extortion, and exploitation of minorities. Anyhow, this Act is bound to affect India’s relations with these countries, heavily with Pakistan and Bangladesh and to some extent with Afghanistan.