Nazia Nazar
Indian hegemonic designs and bullying her neighboring countries is not a new phenomenon. Being landlocked countries Nepal and Bhutan have witnessed extreme forms of diplomatic coercion, whereas other countries of the region face India’s interference and proxy wars etc. Almost all smaller neighboring countries have been wary of India; however with China’s footprints in Nepal, Maldives, Bhutan and Sri Lanka, Indian influence is waning. In the backdrop of Doklam standoff, Bhutan has become crucial for Indian adventurism. Although, all political parties had agreed before the election campaign that they would not ‘politicize’ sensitive issues like foreign policy, but India factor dominated the polls with rival parties defaming each other on Indo-Bhutan relations. Driven by “Mandalay philosophy”, India under Narendra Modi has been attempting to attain a dominant position in national and regional politics. Lok Sabha 2019 elections witnessed unusually sharp increase in BJP seat tally due to the extremist organizations’ support.
Though Nepal is a sovereign country, but it had to compromise its sovereignty which was obvious while adoption of new constitution and economic agreements with China that angered India, as if Nepal was India’s vassal state. On 23rd September 2015, India had started Nepal’s blockade, exactly three days after the Constituent Assembly of Nepal had passed the Constitution on 20th September 2015 with 90% members voting in favour. Out of Nepal’s 598-strong Constituent Assembly only 66 members from Madeshi and Tharu minorities abstained from voting in protest, arguably on India’s behest. Nepal has been a prime target of Indian deep state stratagem to make it a client state after subduing Bhutan and Maldives. Nepal has many a time tried to break the octopus squeeze of India, but due to geographically landlocked position, contiguity and trade dependence, it buckled under pressure.
Anyhow, Modi govt is now expanding interventionist policy under the garb of foreign aid and cultural invasion of some regional countries. Indian government’s key instrument for diplomacy is that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has obtained a 14.7% hike in the allocation for 2019-20, compared to revised estimate for 2018-19. This means 19% rise when evaluated against the ministry’s actual expenditure in 2017-18. Reportedly, first Budget of the Modi government’s second term has registered a sharp increase in money allotted for foreign aid for Mauritius, Maldives, Bhutan and Nepal. According to the budget, India plans to spend Rs 9,069.34 crores on various projects (a hike of 25% from the last financial year’s revised estimates). This is the biggest jump in foreign aid since Modi govt’s first entry in New Delhi in May 2014. Bhutan continues to be allotted the largest share for a single country in India’s foreign aid budget.
Modi is scheduled to travel to Bhutan next month, where he will inaugurate the 720 megawatt Mangdecchu project and discuss an additional hydropower project. Aid for Mauritius has been tripled (from Rs. 350.39 crores in 2017-18 to Rs 1,100 crores for 2019-20). According to sources, the increase in funding was essential because of several of India’s proposals including Metro Express, construction of Supreme Court building and also infrastructure at Agalega Island. It is pertinent to mention that Agaléga Island is leased to the Indian military for the development of strategic assets. Moreover, head of the Mauritius Navy and the Mauritian National Security Advisor are Indian officers. Maldives will also get a fresh infusion of funds. In 2017-18, India disbursed Rs. 109.24 crores to Maldives. This quadrupled to Rs. 440 crores in 2018-19 and has risen even further to Rs. 576 crores in 2019-20.
While relations with Kathmandu remain a bit strained, India has increased the allocation for Nepal from an actual disbursement of Rs 376.61 crores in 2017-18 to an estimated Rs 1,050 crores in 2019-20 (a boost of 178%). There has also been an increase in allocation for African countries to Rs 450 crores in 2019-20 and 18 new Indian diplomatic Missions in Africa were approved in March 18). Five new embassies have been opened in Rwanda, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Guinea and Burkina Faso, with another four scheduled to be launched in 2019-20. Interestingly, since last two years allocations for development of Iran’s Chabahar port are conspicuously missing.
India had proactively promoted the coalition led by Maithripala Sirisena to defeat former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Diplomatic analysts feel that New Delhi should not behave like the modern-day Raj, and Indian diplomats deputed to these countries should stop thinking that they are modern-day Viceroys. Instead of following a hegemonic policy and lavish spending as foreign aid, India needs to realize growing poverty in the country. As per India’s own survey, more than 400 million (one third of the country’s population of more than 1.2 billion) continue to live below the poverty line. Poverty statistics of India reveal that 50% of Indians have no proper shelter; 70% have no access to decent toilets; 35% of households have no nearby water source; 35% of villages have no secondary school, over 40% of these villages have no roads connectivity. Contrastingly, Indian leadership claims for 9 % annual growth and brazenly follows interventionist policies.
