Hindutva and Violence Against Women

In this monograph, one of India’s leading, most committed political and human rights activists examines how women’s safety, dignity and security have been undermined in the decade since the Hindu right rose to near-absolute power. Hindutva—the guiding philosophy of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the rest of the Sangh Parivar—is at its core a majoritarian, militant and regressive thought system that draws inspiration from casteist, communal and misogynistic texts and ideologues. While injustice in cases of violence against women is not new in India, writes Brinda Karat, the political supremacy of Hindutva since 2014 has changed the nature and extent of this injustice. The religious identities of the victims and the perpetrators determine the approach of powerful leaders and their governments, the police, and, increasingly, the courts. This creates new rape cultures that ultimately affect the processes of justice for all women.