Modi and the Reinvention of Indian Foreign Policy

Narendra Modi’s energetic personal diplomacy and promise to make India a ‘leading power’, made soon after his landslide election victory in May 2014, surprised many analysts. Most had predicted that his government would concentrate on domestic issues, on the growth and development demanded by Indian voters, and that he lacked necessary experience in international relations. Instead, Modi’s time in office saw a concerted attempt to reinvent Indian foreign policy by replacing inherited understandings of its place in the world with one drawn largely from Hindu nationalist ideology. This book explores the drivers of this reinvention, arguing it arose from a combination of elite conviction and electoral calculation, and the impact it had on India’s international relations under Modi. It examines how Hindu nationalists understand the world and India’s place and role within it, as well as what we know about Modi’s thought and political style. It addresses, in turn, his government’s attempt to present India as a ‘world guru’ with teachings draw from its rich civilizational inheritance, its attempt to further regional prosperity and connectivity in South Asia, and its efforts to address national security vulnerabilities and manage relations with the major powers.