Extremism in Pakistan and India: The Case of Jamaat-e-Islami and Shiv Sena

Abstract

Both India and Pakistan have witnessed the emergence of right-wing organizations in their countries which threaten the foundations of tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Both countries, as discussed in the study have come under the spell of different versions of right-wing extremism. This work does not even attempt to elaborately address all the facets of right-wing extremism in both the countries, but to provide a glimpse into the problem of right-wing extremism by discussing the two case studies in detail. The idea is to bring to the forefront the possible answers to the threat posed by right-wing extremist parties. How will democracies like India, and Pakistan, with a dominant history of authoritarian regimes and struggling democracies, tackle the problem of right-wing extremism? ... The main objective of the study is to analyse the existence, growth and mode of operations of right-wing organizations in two different political environments (i.e. predominantly military supremacy in Pakistan, and democratic India), its impact on societies in the two countries, and explore the ways and means to curb the growing influence of right-wing extremist groups. Drawing insights from the existing theoretical views, the study attempts to understand the origin and growth of right-wing organizations in India and Pakistan and facilitate a conceptual clarity on the definition of extremism based on the particular case studies.