Akhand Bharat

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Proposed Akhand Bharat includes the modern territories of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan ,Sri Lanka, Burma, Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Akhand Bharat (Hindustani: अखण्ड भारत (Devanagri), اکھنڈ بھارت (Urdu)), also known as Akhand Hindustan (Hindustani: अखण्ड हिन्दुस्तान (Devanagri), اکھنڈ ہندوستان (Nastaleeq)), is an irredentist Hindustani term literally meaning Undivided India.[1][2]

History

At the time of the Indian Independence Movement, K.M. Munshi advocated for Akhand Hindustan, a proposition that Mahatma Gandhi, believing that "as Britain wanted to retain her empire by pursuing a policy of divide and rule, Hindu-Muslim unity could not be achieved as long as the British were there."[3] In addition, Mazhar Ali Khan wrote that "the Khan brothers [were] determined to fight for Akhand Hindustan, and challenged the League to fight the issue out before the electorate of the Province."[4] On 7–8 October, 1944, in Delhi, Radha Kumud Mukherjee presided over the Akhand Hindustan Leaders' Conference.[5]

Modern usage

The call for creation of the Akhand Bharat or Akhand Hindustan has on occasions been raised by some Indian right wing Hindutvadi cultural and political organisations such as the Hindu Mahasabha, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).[6][7][8][9] The name of one organisation sharing this goal, the Akhand Hindustan Morcha, bears the term in its name.[10] Other major Indian non-sectarian political parties such as the Indian National Congress, maintain a position against the partition of India on religious grounds, do not subscribe to a call for Akhand Bharat.

Pre-1947 maps of pre-partition India showing the current states of Pakistan and Bangladesh as part of the territories of British India illustrate the borders of a proto-Akhand Bharat[8] The creation of an Akhand Bharat is also ideologically linked with the concept of Hindutva (Hinduness) and the ideas of sangathan (unity) and shuddhi (purification) that seek to focus modern Indian politics on a legendary ancient civilisation and heritage of South Asia.[9]

While the leadership of the right wing BJP wavers on the issue, the RSS has always remained a strong proponent of the idea.[11][12] RSS leader H. V. Seshadri's book The Tragic Story of Partition stresses the importance of the concept of Akhand Bharat.[13] The RSS mouthpiece Organiser often publishes editorials by leaders such as the present Sarsanghachalak, Mohan Bhagwat, espousing the philosophy that only Akhand Bharat and sampoorna samaj (united society) can bring "real" freedom to the people of India.[14]

The right wing Vishwa Hindu Parishad also remains a strong proponent of the idea, with its leader, Praveen Togadia, stating that Hindu birthrates should increase so that the Indian flag will fly in "Kandahar, Lahore, and Dhaka" (In Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh respectively).[15]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Yale H. Ferguson and R. J. Barry Jones, Political space: frontiers of change and governance in a globalizing world, page 155, SUNY Press, 2002, ISBN 978-0-7914-5460-2
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Sucheta Majumder, "Right Wing Mobilization in India", Feminist Review, issue 49, page 17, Routledge, 1995, ISBN 978-0-415-12375-4
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Ulrika Mårtensson and Jennifer Bailey, Fundamentalism in the Modern World (Volume 1), page 97, I.B.Tauris, 2011, ISBN 978-1-84885-330-0
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Jyotirmaya Sharma, "Ideological heresy?, The Hindu, 2005-06-19
  12. ↑ Radhika Ramaseshan, "Advani fires Atal weapon", The Telegraph, 2005-06-16
  13. ↑ Ashish Vashi, "Anti-Sardar Patel book sold from RSS HQ in Gujarat", The Times of India, 2009-08-27
  14. ↑ Manini Chatterjee, "Only by Akhand Bharat", The Indian Express, 2007-02-01
  15. ↑ DNA Indian, "Law for having only two children should be framed", "DNA INDIA", 13 Jan 2015
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