“A reaction across the line”
Sergei Kozhemyakin, Pravda, December 1, 2025 —
A reactionary domestic policy cannot be reconciled with a progressive foreign policy. India serves as a reminder of this. Its authorities continue to draw closer to the United States and Israel, while simultaneously attempting to suppress dissent by fomenting sectarian sentiment.
Vicious circle
The most populous country in the world, India, is extremely diverse in terms of nationality, culture, and religion. The first leaders of the independent state took this into account: India became a federal state with broad powers for its states.
More than a decade of right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rule has eroded republican, secular, and federal principles, but regions still retain a significant degree of autonomy. Local elections are turning into battles—all the more fierce because the upper house of parliament is formed by state legislative assemblies. A region’s weight at the federal level depends on its population size.
One such “heavyweight” is Bihar, with a population of 130 million. By all socioeconomic indicators, it ranks near the bottom of the Indian states. While the national average Human Development Index is 0.685, and in communist-led Kerala, for example, it is 0.789, in Bihar it is only 0.609, comparable to poor African countries. A quarter of the population, including a third of women, is illiterate. Hundreds of thousands of people leave the region every year in search of a better life.
Five years ago, the BJP-led alliance barely held onto power. The left-wing parties’ success was a sensation. The Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) each won two constituencies, while the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation (CPI(ML)O) won twelve. The latter organization emerged in Bihar in the 1970s, defending the interests of lower castes and peasants. Semi-feudal relations persist in the region to this day. Landowners exploit small farmers and, if they rebel, unleash terror. The CPI(ML)O sided with the workers, and dozens of its activists were killed by gangs hired by feudal lords.
The November elections in Bihar showed that these tensions are not a thing of the past. The Narendra Modi government threw all its efforts into winning the vote. Shortly before the vote, the Central Election Commission initiated a review of the voter lists. Six and a half million people were excluded without explanation. Those most often “excluded” were members of lower castes and Muslims, who typically vote for the opposition. The Supreme Court of India ordered the Central Election Commission to publish the full list of those excluded, along with the reasons, but the request was denied.
Members of the government, led by the prime minister, toured the region to support the candidates. Modi declared that he had “no doubt of a colossal victory” for the ruling coalition, and his subordinates even cited specific figures. Home Minister Amit Shah set a target of winning 160 seats in the 243-seat assembly, while Defense Minister Rajnath Singh spoke of two-thirds of the seats.
To achieve this, the government resorted to familiar methods, including inciting sectarian hatred. Opposition candidates were branded “agents of Pakistan” and defenders of “Islamic terrorists.” Yogi Adityanath, the militant Hindu chief minister of neighboring Uttar Pradesh, called on like-minded people in Bihar to embrace “bulldozer democracy.” This is a mocking reference to the region’s practice of demolishing homes and properties belonging to Muslims.
By making populist promises like creating jobs for the youth, the ruling alliance represented the interests of the wealthy elite. More than half of the BJP’s candidate list were from the upper castes, and there wasn’t a single Muslim on the list (even though their share of the state’s population approaches 20 percent).
In opposition to the ruling class, the opposition focused on addressing pressing issues. The CPI(ML)O’s election manifesto included demands for land redistribution among farmers and their support through the write-off of oppressive loans and free energy, housing for the homeless, the implementation of a pension system, universal access to social services, and an end to destructive neoliberal reforms. “The collapse of the education and healthcare systems, the vicious cycle of poverty, growing immigration, violence against Dalits [lower castes], and severe unemployment—this is the reality of today’s Bihar,” the communists pointed out.
Dirty campaigning methods brought victory to the incumbent government. Three communist parties garnered a combined 2.1 million votes, nearly 200,000 more than in 2020. However, their representation in the assembly was reduced to three seats due to various manipulations. For example, in the Agyaon constituency, the winning BDP candidate’s margin over the CPI(ML)O nominee was 95 votes—0.06 percent. Clearly, the election results do not reflect the true state of affairs and balance of power. As the CPI(ML)O emphasized, election to the assembly is not an end in itself; it is merely part of the effort to protect the interests of the masses.
Filthy Riches
Events in Bihar reflect the situation in the country as a whole. Economic Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently announced that India is poised to become the world’s third-largest economy. However, by one indicator—the number of dollar billionaires—the country has already broken into the top three. The number of local billionaires has exceeded two hundred, with their combined wealth approaching a trillion dollars. A quarter of this total is held by just three moguls: Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani, and Savitri Jindal.
Against this backdrop, the gap between rich and poor is widening. The wealthiest one percent of Indians received 41 percent of the wealth created since 2000, while the poorest half of the population received only one percent. Unemployment among young people aged 20-24 has reached 45 percent. The current economic structure is unable to provide jobs for the 9 million people entering working age each year. As a result, the share of self-employed people increased from 58.3 to 60.2 percent in the first half of the year alone.
Kerala is one of the rare exceptions. In the state, governed by the Left Democratic Front—an alliance led by the CPI(M)—wealth doesn’t end up in the pockets of the wealthy, but rather benefits all residents. Before the last elections, the communists promised to eradicate extreme poverty. And on November 1, the authorities announced they had achieved this goal. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan called it a historic moment. He expressed hope that Kerala’s experience would become a model for other parts of India.
Yet, half a century ago, two-thirds of this state’s residents lived in poverty! Land reform implemented by the communists and the provision of universal access to education and healthcare have made Kerala a leader in socioeconomic development. In the most recent phase, the local government identified 64,000 households living in multidimensional poverty and implemented comprehensive measures to improve their living standards.
Other regions can only dream of similar successes. This is evident in the growing protest activity. For several months, an indefinite strike by the National Health Mission (NHM) has been ongoing in Maharashtra, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and other states. This program was launched to support the state healthcare system. Although its staff bear the brunt of primary healthcare, they lack the same labor rights and salaries as other healthcare workers.
In Uttar Pradesh, power company workers protested their privatization, while in Tamil Nadu, workers at a tire manufacturing plant went on strike. IT workers are not immune to exploitation and abuse either. One of the industry’s leaders, Tata Consultancy Services, recently laid off thousands of employees. This despite annual revenues of $31 billion.
In some cases, economic problems compound political and religious conflicts. In Ladakh, a union territory carved out of Kashmir in 2019, mass protests demanding statehood and an end to repression erupted. Central authorities accused the protesters of having ties to “foreign powers,” and four demonstrators were killed and 150 injured during the crackdown. Religiously, Ladakh’s population is almost equally divided between Muslims and Buddhists. This alone makes the region “suspicious” from the perspective of the government and the BJP, which are affiliates of radical Hindu groups.
The largest of these, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), celebrated its centenary. As a reminder, Modi was a longtime activist. Speaking at the anniversary celebrations, he called on everyone to follow the RSS slogan “Nation First.” Modi readily quoted the founders of the RSS, such as Madhav Golwalkar. The latter, it should be noted, openly admired Hitler and the Nazi racial theory. Following this tradition, the authorities are increasingly resorting to repressive measures. For example, the Public Security Act allows people to be detained for up to a year without charge.
Servants of imperialism
V.I. Lenin once wrote that “political reaction across the board is a characteristic of imperialism.” India’s ruling class is desperately seeking to join the club of global powers, exploiting not only its own population but also the peoples within its sphere of influence. The country’s sheer weight doesn’t yet allow for much leeway, so New Delhi is integrating itself into the imperialist schemes of other players.
Many Russian media outlets and political commentators assert the opposite. They claim India is boldly resisting Western pressure. In reality, India has not sacrificed its strategic ties with the United States. The owners of major oil refineries have not placed orders for Russian oil for December and have refused to cooperate with sanctioned companies Rosneft and Lukoil. However, India’s fuel purchases from the United States in October reached 568,000 barrels per day—a five-year high.
On October 31, US and Indian military chiefs Pete Hegseth and Rajnath Singh extended the Defense Framework Agreement. Hegseth called the document “a cornerstone of regional stability and deterrence,” specifying that the parties plan to deepen military coordination, intensify intelligence sharing, and enhance technological cooperation. Singh declared a “new era in defense relations” reflecting “growing strategic convergence.”
India’s ties with its closest US allies are developing no less dynamically. In September, a delegation led by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich visited New Delhi. The politician, representing the most extreme wing of Zionism, is banned from entering even some Western countries. But here he was welcomed with open arms. The parties signed agreements to stimulate mutual trade and investment, and to cooperate in cybersecurity, innovation, and the military-industrial complex.
In early November, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar visited the country. “India is a global superpower, Israel is a regional one,” the guest slyly flattered. “We already have close, friendly relations; now our goal is to build a long-term strategic partnership.” Unlike many other countries, India refused to condemn Israel at the UN and has only increased its support for the Jewish state. Israeli troops received dozens of Hermes 900 reconnaissance and combat drones, built at a factory in Hyderabad. This is a joint venture between the Indian Adani Group and the Israeli company Elbit Advanced Systems. Billionaire Adani’s conglomerate owns the port of Haifa, Israel’s main seaport. Another Indian conglomerate, Tata, supplies its partners with armored vehicles, surveillance and targeting systems, and Ambani’s Reliance Defense corporation is working with Israeli firms on missile systems and UAVs.
In India itself, protests in solidarity with Palestine are being suppressed. In the state of Telangana, nationalists, supported by police, attacked a student demonstration, and leaders of the CPI(M) branch were arrested. Communists call this a betrayal of the legacy of the anti-colonial struggle. Pointing to the close ties between radical Hinduism and Zionism, they emphasize that both movements serve imperialist interests.