---

India’s covert support for pro-monarchy movements in Nepal reflects the BJP’s broader Hindutva agenda, a dangerous mix of ideology and interventionism that undermines regional stability

The recent surge in pro-monarchy protests in Nepal, demanding the restoration of a Hindu rashtra, has raised eyebrows across South Asia. Nepal’s transition to a secular republic in 2008 marked the end of its monarchy and Hindu rashtra. The country’s Constitution has not even completed a decade of implementation. During this period, 14 governments have changed in Nepal, with no elected government completing its term. There has been an atmosphere of political instability in the country, leading to corruption, tepid economic growth, and high unemployment that are breeding frustration among the people. However, reverting to autocracy is not a solution.

While New Delhi officially denies any involvement in the pro-monarchy protests, the ideological fingerprints of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and its Hindutva-driven agenda are unmistakably visible. In the years before Narendra Modi became prime minister, India appeared content with engaging Nepal’s democratic institutions while maintaining cultural and economic ties. However, since 2014, the BJP and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, have openly championed the idea of Nepal reverting to a Hindu rashtra and a monarchy. Groups like the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh and militant affiliates such as the Bajrang Dal have established networks in Nepal, mirroring their tactics in India through grassroots organising, religious events, and social media campaigns.

India’s relationship with Nepal’s monarchy has been paradoxical for long. After supporting the Shah dynasty’s return in 1951, New Delhi grew wary as kings like Mahendra and Gyanendra pivoted Nepal towards China to counterbalance Indian influence. The 2008 abolition of the monarchy, which India tacitly accepted, marked a shift toward engaging Nepal’s democratic forces. However, India’s Hindu Right has never fully abandoned the nostalgia for Nepal’s Hindu monarchy, viewing it as a cultural and strategic ally. The RSS, which historically cultivated ties with Nepal’s monarchy to promote Hindu unity, continues to frame the issue as a civilisational battle against ‘atheist communists’ and foreign influences.

Since 2014, New Delhi has amplified this sentiment, with leaders like the Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, openly endorsing monarchist demands in Nepal. This influence is visible in the growing prominence of Nepal’s right-wing Rastriya Prajatantra Party, which has openly called for the country to revert to a Hindu kingdom. Adityanath’s posters appearing at rallies in Kathmandu and his past criticism of Nepal’s secularism underscore this ideological push; Modi himself has strategically visited Hindu temples during his trips to Nepal to signal solidarity with pro-Hindu factions. While New Delhi’s official stance remains non-interventionist, the ideological push from Hindutva forces has increasingly influenced Nepal’s domestic politics, fostering polarisation and undermining its secular framework.

Under Modi, Hindutva, the ideological foundation of the BJP, has evolved from a domestic agenda into a regional strategy. Nepal has become a focal point for this ideological export. This isn’t just nostalgia; it’s part of a broader Hindutva project that seeks to reclaim perceived mythical lost glory by reshaping South Asia into a monolithic Hindu civilisational entity.

The BJP’s ideological push in Nepal also reflects its broader vision of Akhand Bharat, a unified Hindu civilisational State across and beyond South Asia. This narrative conflates cultural affinity with political intervention, ignoring the complexities of sovereignty and historical mistrust. While the Modi government frames its actions as cultural diplomacy, the reality is far more divisive. The 2015 Indian blockade against Nepal following Nepal’s adoption of its secular Constitution was widely seen as a punitive measure against Kathmandu’s rejection of Hindu rashtra in its Constitution.

India’s flirtation with monarchy and Hindutva politics in Nepal is not without consequences. By tacitly supporting the royalists, India risks alienating Nepal’s republican majority, which views secularism as essential to preserving its sovereignty. This could deepen resentment towards New Delhi and push Kathmandu closer to Beijing. If India is perceived as meddling in Nepal’s domestic politics to impose Hindutva ideology or monarchy, Beijing will exploit this mistrust to strengthen its ties with Kathmandu. Recent agreements between Nepal and China on trade routes and energy cooperation highlight how quickly India could lose more ground with its northern neighbour.

Supporting monarchists also undermines India’s credibility as a democratic ideal in South Asia. The BJP’s alignment with Hindu majoritarianism in Nepal mirrors its domestic policies in India where religious minorities face increasing marginalisation under the Modi government. By attempting to dismantle Kathmandu’s secular identity, which was established after the abolition of the monarchy, India will alienate minority communities within Nepal, including Buddhists and Christians, while fostering religious extremism. New Delhi seems oblivious to the reality that a return to monarchy would likely exacerbate internal divisions within Nepal rather than resolve them.

What does this tell us about India under Modi? It reveals a government willing to subordinate strategic interests to ideological ambitions. The BJP’s Hindutva project is not confined to India; it seeks to reshape South Asia into a Hindu civilisational monolith under the guise of cultural affinity and historical ties. But this approach ignores historical lessons: Nepal’s monarchy was never a reliable ally for New Delhi; it was transactional and often pivoted to China when convenient. Historically, Nepal’s monarchy often leveraged nationalism rooted in anti-Indian sentiment to consolidate power. Moreover, the idea of Hindu solidarity is not only impractical but dangerously provocative — it risks alienating neighbours that value their sovereignty over shared religion.

By conflating cultural nostalgia with political intervention, Modi risks isolating a critical neighbour at a time when China is aggressively courting South Asian nations through economic diplomacy. For all its talk of regional leadership, India under Modi is increasingly seen as an ideologically-driven actor rather than a pragmatic power broker, a perception that is already costing New Delhi dearly in the region.

India’s covert support for pro-monarchy movements in Nepal reflects the BJP’s broader Hindutva agenda, a dangerous mix of ideology and interventionism that undermines regional stability and strategic interests. If New Delhi continues down this path, it risks pushing Kathmandu further into Beijing's orbit while eroding its own credibility as a democratic leader in South Asia. For India to retain influence, it must engage Nepal as a democratic equal and not see it through the prism of Hindu nostalgia. The stakes for New Delhi are high: pursuing Hindutva’s ideological goals may gladden the apparatchiks of Nagpur but it could unravel India’s strategic interests on its Himalayan frontier.

Sushant Singh is lecturer at Yale University.

This article was originally published on Telegraph.
Views in this article are author’s own and do not necessarily reflect CGS policy.