Bachelor thesis | South and Southeast Asian Studies (BA)
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Ever since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, acquired power in 2014 many pro-Hindu regulations have been gone into a fast track. One of these regulations is a...Show moreEver since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, acquired power in 2014 many pro-Hindu regulations have been gone into a fast track. One of these regulations is a ban on the consumption and possession of beef, which is a legal offence. This ban on beef is viewed as an attack on the citizenship of India’s largest of minority groups; the Dalits and Muslims. This thesis questions how a ban like this contradicts with the secular identity of India. The citizenship of the minority groups will be examined by having an historical overview of their struggles to reach equality within a society with changing interpretations of secularism. Why has there occurred discrepancies in the theory and practice in Indian secularism? And how does this weaken the citizenship of the minorities? Can India , with the expansion of the beef ban explain the development of the large beef export industry on the grounds of secularism? This thesis develops an understanding that pluralistic societies use their secular identity only when it fits their political agenda.Show less
