With Prosperity Comes Rivalry
A range of actors are working to undermine India’s unity and integrity. These forces include foreign governments and organizations that support separatist movements, international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that promote minority rights designed to create divisions between different religious and ethnic groups, Western academics who are critical of India’s Hindu-majority government and its policies on religious freedom and Indian leftists who are opposed to the Hindu nationalist movement and its agenda of Hindutva.
Anti-India forces would like to work together to fragment India into a thousand pieces. Pakistan has been following a policy of “death by a thousand cuts” against India, employing terrorists and subversive activities. China uses the “Three Warfares” during peacetime.
There is no denying that there are a number of domestic factors that could help to these “Breaking India” forces, which include economic inequality, separatism and myriad of political institutions.
Soros Network
The Soros network funded by George Soros and his Open Society Foundations is active in over 120 countries around the world, and its work supposedly focuses on promoting democracy, human rights, and open societies. It is a dangerous attempt to undermine national sovereignty and traditional values, in disguise.
The Soros network has been accused of supporting a number of controversial causes, including the Black Lives Matter movement, the Occupy Wall Street movement, and the campaign to legalize same-sex marriage. The network has also been criticized for its hidden agenda and support of organizations that promote secularism and religious freedom in countries with sizeable-Muslim populations.
A number organizations are part of the Soros network, like Open Society Foundations, Open Society Justice Initiative, Open Society Foundations-India, Open Society Foundations-Europe and Open Society Foundations-Africa.
The Open Society Foundations (OSF) has funded a number of organizations in India, including:
• Human Rights Law Network (HRLN)
• People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL)
• Centre for Equity Studies
• Navsarjan Trust
• Satyagraha Foundation
• Sabrang Trust
• Sherpa
• Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR)
The OSF has also funded a number of smaller organizations and projects in India, such as the Lokniti-Centre for the Study of Developing Societies and the Centre for Policy Research.
The OSF’s funding in India has been controversial, with some critics accusing the organization of trying to undermine the Indian government. The OSF is one of the largest funders of civil society in India.
International NGOs
There are a number of other organizations that have been accused of working against India’s interests. These organizations include:
• Ford Foundation
• MacArthur Foundation
• Rockefeller Foundation
• Asia Foundation
• German Marshall Fund
• National Endowment for Democracy
These organizations are all based in the United States, and they have all been accused of funding organizations in India that are critical of the Indian government. The critics of these organizations argue that they are trying to undermine India’s sovereignty and that they are working to promote Western values in India.
Other organizations have been accused of funding agitations in India. These organizations include:
• Greenpeace
• Amnesty International
• ActionAid
• People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL)
• Human Rights Law Network (HRLN)
• Satyagraha Foundation
• Sabrang Trust
• Sherpa
These organizations have been accused of funding protests against government projects, such as nuclear power plants and coal mines. They have also been accused of funding protests against government policies, such as the Land Acquisition Act and the Forest Rights Act.
Greenpeace. Greenpeace India was expelled from India in 2015 after being accused of financial fraud and violating foreign funding laws. It was accused of lying about its sources of funding (it claimed that it was funded by Indian donors when it was actually funded by foreign donors), falsifying documents including its annual reports and its financial statements, misusing foreign funds and Undermining India’s national security (working to promote environmental extremis).
Amnesty International. Amnesty International was asked to close it operations in India in 2020, following investigations, for the same reasons. It was also accused of working to promote separatism and terrorism in India.
In 2018, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), India’s financial crimes investigation agency, raided Amnesty International’s offices in Bangalore and seized documents. The ED alleged that Amnesty International had violated the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), which regulates foreign funding to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in India.
Amnesty International has challenged the MHA’s decision in court, and the case is ongoing.
ActionAid. ActionAid also came under the ED’s radar in 2015, when it raided its offices in Bangalore and seized documents for violation of the FCRA. In 2017, the MHA ordered ActionAid India to close its operations in India. ActionAid India has challenged the MHA’s decision in court, and the case is ongoing.
ActionAid India has been criticized for its work on the Right to Food Act, the Land Acquisition Act and the Forest Rights Act, all of which undermined the government’s efforts to implement the Acts.
People’s Union for Civil Liberties. The PUCL is a human rights organization in India that has been accused of breaking the law on a number of occasions. The most serious accusations against PUCL include its work on the Gujarat riots, the Kashmir conflict and on the Naxalite insurgency. All these have undermined the government’s efforts. PUCL’s work on the Naxalite insurgency has been too sympathetic to the Naxalites, and worked against suppressing the insurgency.
In 2009, the ED, seized documents from PUCL’s offices on FCRA funding. In 2016, the MHA ordered PUCL to close its operations in India. PUCL has challenged the MHA’s decision in court, and the case is ongoing.
Human Rights Law Network. The Indian government has objected to the political agenda of the HRLN alleging financial irregularities, supporting anti-national activities, promoting separatism and being biased against the government. HRLN has been forced to close some of its offices in India.
Ford Foundation. The Ford Foundation has been accused of funding organizations that are critical of the Indian government including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, promoting Western values which are incompatible with Indian culture and tradition and interfering in India’s internal affairs by funding organizations that have been involved in protests against government projects.
Rockefeller Foundation. The Rockefeller Foundation has been accused of activities similar to Ford Foundation’s. The Rockefeller Foundation has funded the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) and the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) besides others critical of the government. The Foundation has also been criticized for its work on the Green Revolution, which it funded and for its work on family planning and their coercive methods and their impact on women’s rights.
Big Tech
Big Tech companies (meta, Microsoft, Amazon, Twitter) have been accused of working against India’s interests through Monopolization of the market for digital services in India, collecting and using data from Indian users without their consent, censoring content that is critical of the Indian government or offensive to Hindu religious sensibilities and Tax avoidance.
The Indian government has introduced new laws that regulate the data collection and use practices of Big Tech companies. It is important to note that not all of the accusations against Big Tech companies are accurate. However, there is enough evidence to suggest that these companies have the potential to work against India’s interests. It is important to be aware of these concerns and to hold Big Tech companies accountable for their actions.
China’s Three Warfares
China’s is using its “Three Warfares” military strategy which comprises of psychological warfare, legal warfare, and media warfare. Psychological warfare uses propaganda, disinformation, and other means to influence the thoughts and emotions of the enemy. Legal warfare challenges the enemy’s actions through international law and other legal instruments to gain a strategic advantage. Media warfare influences and shapes the narrative of a conflict.
The Three Warfares were used in the 2008 Doklam standoff between China and India, and the 2020 Galwan Valley clash.
Cognitive warfare is simply psychological manipulation to influence the minds of individuals and groups. China uses it against India in a number of ways, including spreading disinformation, infiltrating Indian institutions and through cyberattacks.
China has used lawfare against India in a number of ways. For example, it used domestic laws to target Indian companies. In 2020, China’s Ministry of Commerce imposed a ban on imports of cotton from India, citing concerns about quality. The ban was actually aimed at pressuring India to withdraw its support for the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). In 2021, China filed a lawsuit against India at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague, challenging India’s decision to build a road in the Ladakh region. The PCA has not yet ruled on the case, but it has delayed the construction of the road.
Chinese influence operations in India have increased since the Galwan Valley clash of June 2020. China has been using social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok to spread disinformation and propaganda about India and sow discord.
Tool Kit Against India
There are a number of indications that a “toll kit” has been prepared and shared with people who are against India. The toolkit was found on the laptop of climate activist Disha Ravi, who was arrested by the Delhi Police on February 13, 2021. The toolkit contained a number of instructions on how to spread disinformation and propaganda about India, as well as how to organize protests and demonstrations against the government.
The toolkit was also shared by a number of other activists on social media, including Greta Thunberg. These activists have been accused of being part of a larger campaign to spread anti-India sentiment.
