A deeper state? Anti-Christian violence in contemporary Chhattisgarh
Kaiser, N. Nielsen, K.B.
Kaiser, N.
Nielsen, K.B.
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2025
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Abstract
This article analyses the violence directed towards Adivasi Christians in Chhattisgarh in India between 2018 and 2023, under the governance of the Indian National Congress (INC). With Chhattisgarh as a case study, this article pursues a two-fold agenda. First, it maps the anti-Christian violence in the state perpetrated by Hindutva groups. Second, it analyses the persistence of such violence under an INC state government. The INC is a supposedly secular party competing electorally with the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Engaging with Jaffrelot’s concept of a deeper state, this article demonstrates how Chhattisgarh’s ‘deeper state’ exists even when the BJP is not in power. The interaction between the INC’s ‘soft’ Hindutva and anti-Christian violence at a local level in Bastar district is assessed, foregrounding the interplay of governance, vigilante groups and community members.
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Kaiser N, Nielsen KB, Selvaraj S (2025) A deeper state? Anti-Christian violence in contemporary Chhattisgarh. Commonwealth and Comparative Politics. Accepted for publication
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