Octet Maximus

Eight geographically-distant countries seem to have devised a common strategy to ensure India and Indians are kept at bay. What has sparked this trust deficit?

- RAJEEV NARAYAN

"Someday, I hope that we will all be patriots of our planet and not just our respective nations." — Zoe Weil

It is a sad reality of life that progress and development often exact a high price. It is the price families pay by drifting apart, neighbours cough up by ignoring one another, and nations shell out by resorting to diplomatic weaponry, or toting guns and other military paraphernalia. Anything to put down a once-brother or sister. It is mirthless and ironical, especially in a world that is getting increasingly interconnected. A relationship analogy explains this: A single dot makes a point. Two points make a line. Three points make a trend.

Worldwide, the trend is visible and ominous. But for the purport of relevance, let us speak of India, the largest democracy and a fast-growing economy that is being subtly but systematically isolated by a consortium of distant (and not-so-distant) countries. This silent, unspoken and unmistakable coalition is bull-headed, building walls where once stood bridges that forded gurgling streams. The actions of the octet—eight nations are leading the way—raise a disturbing question. Why is India being kept at arm's length, not just diplomatically, but culturally and psychologically too? The answer is perhaps buried in suspicion, selective memory and a growing discomfort with India's assertive identity on the global stage. No one likes a trotter.

The Rift Runs Far And Wide