Saffronization Of The Indian Armed Forces – OpEd
The Indian Armed Forces have long been celebrated—both within India and abroad—as a disciplined, professional, and fiercely apolitical institution. Their constitutional role has demanded neutrality, secularism, and an unwavering commitment to national unity above all ideological divides. Yet under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this image is undergoing a profound transformation. What critics describe as the “saffronization” of the Indian military—the infusion of Hindu nationalist symbolism, ritual practices, and political alignment—signals one of the most troubling institutional shifts in contemporary India.
This saffronization is not occurring in isolation. It coincides with broader political trends in India: democratic backsliding, increased communal polarization, and the mainstreaming of majoritarian Hindu identity. As a result, an institution once domestically respected for impartiality is increasingly viewed as a political appendage—“Modi ki Sena,” as many critics describe—rather than an autonomous pillar of the republic.
Institutional spaces that once highlighted military history and achievements are being reshaped to reflect Hindu mythological narratives. In January 2025, the Army Chief’s lounge in South Block replaced a historic painting commemorating the 1971 war victory with Karam Kshetra, an artwork depicting Krishna, Chanakya, and other mythological elements beside modern military equipment. This shift from a secular historical artifact to a Hindu mythological tableau is more than aesthetic—it symbolizes a deliberate ideological repositioning of the military’s identity.
Similarly, in December 2024, the Fire and Fury Corps unveiled a statue of Shivaji near Pangong Tso in Ladakh, accompanied by a saffron flag. While Shivaji is a significant historical figure, his iconography has been politically appropriated by Hindu nationalist groups, raising concerns about the military’s participation in constructing a majoritarian narrative in a strategically sensitive border region.
The participation of senior officers in public Hindu rituals marks a radical departure from long-standing norms. On National Unity Day in 2025, the Army Chief received a tilak and ceremonial garland while in uniform—a gesture that breached the professional separation between religion and state institutions. A more controversial instance came in May 2025, when the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) visited the ashram of Hindu spiritual leader Rambhadracharya in Madhya Pradesh and reportedly received diksha (religious initiation). Even more troubling was the guru’s declaration that he had asked the COAS to “reclaim AJK as dakshina”—effectively tying national security objectives to a religious obligation. For a military leader bound by constitutional responsibility, this crossing of boundaries is unprecedented.
Operational names and official statements increasingly reflect ideological overtones. Missions titled “Sindoor” and “Mahadev” are not standard military nomenclature but symbolic terms drawn from Hindu tradition. While names alone may seem harmless, in a polarized environment, they reinforce perceptions of politicized militarization.
Even more concerning are political statements by senior officers. Echoing BJP’s hardline rhetoric, some officials have issued aggressive threats toward Pakistan that mirror election campaign language. Such rhetoric undermines the military’s obligation to remain neutral and risks turning defense strategy into political theater.
The Agnipath scheme—introduced in 2022—brought thousands of short-term recruits into the armed forces. Reports suggest that many Agniveers are connected to Hindu nationalist organizations like the RSS. While not universally confirmed, this trend raises concerns about ideological influence shaping the next generation of soldiers.
Sainik Schools, which serve as feeder institutions for officer recruitment, are increasingly run with partnerships involving groups like Vidya Bharati. Embedding Hindu nationalist pedagogy into military preparation deepens the saffronization pipeline and may structurally alter the military’s future outlook.
Symbolic choices reflect broader institutional change. Replacing the historic 1971 war surrender painting with a Hindu-themed artwork indicates a conscious move away from secular national memory. The COAS’s public association with religious leaders—receiving blessings, initiations, and religious instructions while in uniform—undermines the military’s apolitical ethos and projects a dangerous impression of ideological alignment with the ruling party.
Saffronization has had the greatest impact on officers from religious minorities. Reports from 2024–2025 document discriminatory pressures on Sikh, Muslim, and Christian officers to participate in Hindu rituals. The case of Lt. Samuel Kamalesan, dismissed for refusing to engage in Hindu ceremonies—and whose dismissal was upheld by the Delhi High Court—reflects the shrinking space for non-majoritarian identities within the armed forces.
Some minority officers have reported feeling professionally and socially sidelined, leading a few to seek resignation or disengage from promotion pathways. While no mass resignations are publicly confirmed, a pervasive climate of insecurity is evident.
Human Rights Watch’s 2025 report documented over 520 custodial deaths and extrajudicial killings linked, in part, to the emboldening of ideological extremism within security institutions. When the military begins operating under politicized or majoritarian impulses, accountability erodes, and human rights violations escalate.
The saffronization of India’s armed forces is a grave institutional crisis. Through religious symbolism, politicized leadership, ideological recruitment pathways, and discrimination against minorities, the military has been drawn into the orbit of Hindu nationalist politics. Transforming the Indian Armed Forces into a partisan entity not only threatens their professionalism and cohesion—it endangers India’s pluralistic social fabric. A military that aligns with any one religion, ideology, or political party ceases to be a national institution. Today, the increasing perception of the armed forces as “Modi ki Sena” represents not strength, but a deepening fracture in India’s democratic and secular foundations.
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