Misplaced morals: The erosion of India’s stance against Colonialism
In January 2024, news of Israeli firms recruiting labourers in India flooded netizens’ feeds, provoking much debate about the Indian government’s stance on Israeli aggression in Gaza. This, coming after the en masse suspension of work permits of Palestinians and thousands of migrant workers fleeing the country to escape war is the latest move by the Israeli government to deal with labour shortage, especially in the construction sector. Many in India see the prospect of working abroad as a means to better support their families. This has only increased with India’s deteriorating employment figures. However, for people like Manoj Sharma, as NPR reports, a carpenter from Lucknow, it is his love for both India and Israel that spurred on his decision to apply to Israeli companies hiring labourers in India.
Manoj’s sentiments and beliefs are a reflection of the increasing polarisation in India. These beliefs are also shared by the top officials and portfolio-holders in the Indian government. The bridge connecting the governing coalition in Israel and that of Bhartiya Janata Party thus transcends mere ‘friendship’. Rather, the consistent dehumanisation of Muslims and anti-Muslim rhetoric by many BJP leaders can be parallelly observed in Israeli policies and speeches of top Israeli officials and politicians against Palestinians, who also forget the diversity within Palestinians, comprising Muslims as well as Arab Jews and Christians.
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The Indian government’s decision to ‘export’ Indian workers to Israel was criticised by 10 major trade unions – including Indian National Trade Union Congress, All India Trade Union Congress and Hind Mazdoor Sabha– as contributing to the further dehumanisation and commodification of Indian labour. This decision, however, should come as no surprise to those aware of the politically intimate relationship Modi and Netanyahu Share.
Modi’s iteration of solidarity with Israel in their fight against what he labels as ‘terrorism’ comes after a steady rapprochement policy adopted by his government after his rise to power as the Prime Minister of India in 2014. He was, in fact, the first Indian Prime Minister to officially visit Israel.
While a thaw in the relationship between India and Israel could be observed evidently from the 1990s, India’s commitment to Palestinian liberation and the two-state solution has been an overarching foreign policy from which the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) traditionally does not deviate. On paper, India’s stance on Israeli aggression in Gaza reflects the United Nations General Assembly consensus on an immediate ceasefire and has gone as far as condemning Israeli settlement activities in occupied Palestinian territories. On the other hand, India’s labour deal with Israel actively supports colonial development projects, and the dispossession, destruction, and dehumanisation of millions of Palestinians.
The active recruitment of Indian workers in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh juxtaposed against India’s official stance at the United Nations reveals the duplicity that can no longer be justified with appeals to realpolitik. The self-proclaimed rising superpower forgets its long-standing stance against imperialism and colonialism. If British colonialism has revealed anything, it is how colonial development projects are cemented on the consistent exploitation of brown and black bodies.
Israel’s dependence on Palestinian labour and subsequent turn to India and other South Asian countries like Sri Lanka and Nepal after 7th of October 2023 for its settler development projects and other illegal settlements on Palestinian land, only prove this claim and further reveal the neocolonial underpinnings of the globalised labour market. The truth is that these markets still heavily rely on the supply of labour from post-colonial countries. Neocolonialism indeed sees no boundaries or borders.
Israel’s decision to seek assistance from India for supplies of labour uncovers the growing support amongst Hindu Nationalists for Israel’s settler colonial project. A post on ‘X’ shared by the Israeli Foreign Ministry on 4th of February 2023, spoke of Israel perceiving India most favourably, adding “We love our Indian friends”.
While Indians are divided on the matter, with many expressing solidarity with Palestinians, Hindu Nationalists on ‘X’ have found a particular affinity on the issue. One user wrote:
“What is happening with #Israel today, will happen with EVERY country in future which refuses to surrender before Radical Islamic Terrorism! India has suffered it a lot & that’s why we must #StandWithIsrael.”
This ‘common threat’ implied is that of Muslims to not only Hindus in India, but also non-Muslims abroad. People like Manoj then, who although may find themselves stuck in the storm of unemployment in India, may also hold no reservations in joining forces with Israel to tackle the ‘common enemy’.
Many exhibit dismay over the Indian government’s decision to approve the transfer of Indian labourers to Israel who will be working under dangerous conditions. Many also display discomfort towards India’s inconsistency over Gaza and Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories. To those who believe in India’s capacity to become a superpower, I argue that deteriorating economic conditions, mistreatment of minorities at home and misplaced morals on international issues should pose a tremendous concern. Furthermore, for those troubled by India’s stance on settler colonialism, challenging oppression must first begin at home.
*The views expressed in the article are of the author alone and do not represent the views of organisations they may be associated with.*
