->ZI Jony at 06:08, 9 January 2022

2022-01-09T06:08:46Z

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{{Short description|The concept of an undivided India}}
{{About| the concept| the Indian cultural sphere | Greater India }}
{{Original research|date=April 2021}}
{{Infobox continent
|title = Akhand Bharat
|image= File:Map of Undivided India.jpg|image size= 300
|caption= A map of the concept of Akhand Bharat, depicting India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Tibet, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia.


|countries={{collapsible list
| list_style = text-align:left;
| title = [[List of sovereign states and dependent territories in Asia| ]]
| 1= {{flag|India}}
| 2 = {{flag|Pakistan}}
| 3 = {{flag|Bangladesh}}
| 4 = {{flag|Afghanistan}}
| 5 = {{flag|Sri Lanka}}
| 6 = {{flag|Tibet}}
| 7 = {{flag|Nepal}}
| 8 = {{flag|Bhutan}}
| 9 = {{flag|Myanmar}}
| 10 = {{flag|Malaysia}}
| 11 = {{flag|Indonesia}}}}

}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}

'''Akhand Bharat''' ({{translation|Undivided India}}; [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]]: अखण्ड भारत ([[Devanagri]]), اکھنڈ بھارت ([[Nastaleeq]])), also known as '''Akhand Hindustan''' ([[Hindustani language|Hindustani]]: अखण्ड हिन्दुस्तान ([[Devanagri]]), اکھنڈ ہندوستان ([[Nastaleeq]])) is a term literally meaning Undivided India.<ref name="Erdman2007">{{cite book|last=Erdman|first=H. L.|title=The Swatantra Party and Indian Conservatism|date=17 December 2007|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9780521049801|page=55|quote=The ultimate reunification of the subcontinent is a professed goal, as it is for the Mahasabha, but here, too, there is a difference in emphasis which deserves note: for the Sangh, the goal is 'Akhand Bharat', while for the Mahasabha it is 'Akhand Hindustan'.}}</ref><ref name="Chitkara2004">{{cite book|last=Chitkara|first=M. G.|title=Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh|date=1 January 2004|publisher=APH Publishing|isbn=9788176484657|page=262|quote=Those who dub Shri L.K. Advani, the Home Minister of India and others as foreigners, must realise that the freedom struggle was a mass movement of all the people of entire Akhand Hindustan (United Bharat).}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/27/india-faces-a-looming-disaster/|title=India Faces a Looming Disaster|last=Prasad|first=Sumit Ganguly, Jai Shankar|website=Foreign Policy|language=en-US|access-date=8 August 2019}}</ref> It posits that modern-day [[India]], [[Pakistan]], [[Afghanistan]], [[Bangladesh]], [[Nepal]], [[Bhutan]], [[Tibet Autonomous Region|Tibet]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Myanmar|Burma]], [[Malaysia]], [[Indonesia]] are one nation.<ref name=":1">{{cite book |last1=Khandelwal |first1=Meena |last2=Hausner |first2=Sondra L. |last3=Gold |first3=Ann Grodzins |title=Nuns, Yoginis, Saints, and Singers: Women's Renunciation in South Asia |date=2007 |publisher=Zubaan |isbn=978-81-89884-34-5 |url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Nuns_Yoginis_Saints_and_Singers/IloRAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Akhand+Bharat&dq=Akhand+Bharat&printsec=frontcover}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Chatterji |first1=Angana P. |last2=Hansen |first2=Thomas Blom |last3=Jaffrelot |first3=Christophe |title=Majoritarian State: How Hindu Nationalism Is Changing India |date=August 2019 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-007817-1 |page=161 |language=en}}</ref>

==History==
{{further|Composite nationalism|Hindu–Muslim unity}}
During the [[Indian Independence Movement]], [[Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi]] advocated for ''Akhand Hindustan'', a proposition that [[Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi]], agreed with, believing that "as Britain wanted to retain her empire by pursuing a policy of [[divide and rule]], Hindu-Muslim unity could not be achieved as long as the British were there."<ref name="Ghose1991">{{cite book|last=Ghose|first=Sankar|title=Mahatma Gandhi|date=1 January 1991|publisher=Allied Publishers|isbn=9788170232056|page=315|quote=Later, K.M. Munishi, with Gandhi's blessing, also resigned from the Congress to plead for Akhand Hindustan as a counter blast to Pakistan. Gandhi, who previously thought that swaraj was impossible without Hindu-Muslim unity, subsequently came to the conclusion that as Britain wanted to retain her empire by pursuing a policy of divide and rule, Hindu-Muslim unity could not be achieved as long as the British were there.}}</ref> In addition, [[Mazhar Ali Khan (journalist)|Mazhar Ali Khan]] wrote that "the [[Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan|Khan]] brothers [were] determined to fight for Akhand Hindustan, and challenged the [[All-India Muslim League|League]] to fight the issue out before the electorate of the Province."<ref name="KhanKhan1996">{{cite book|last=Khan|first=Mazhar Ali|title=Pakistan: The First Twelve Years|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B_BtAAAAMAAJ|year=1996|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=9780195776768|quote=Many months ago, when the Pakistan issue was still in the melting pot, the Khan brothers determined to fight for Akhand Hindustan, and challenged the League to fight the issue out before the electorate of the Province.}}</ref> On 7–8 October 1944, in Delhi, [[Radha Kumud Mukherjee]] presided over the Akhand Hindustan Leaders' Conference.<ref name="Sharma2008">{{cite book|last=Sharma|first=Jai Narain|title=Encyclopaedia Eminent Thinkers|date=1 January 2008|publisher=Concept Publishing Company|isbn=9788180694929|page=88|quote=On 5 August 1944, he issued a common letter to the leaders of various parties making a proposal to hold Akhand Hindustan Leaders' Conference. Such a conference was held on 7 and 8 October in Delhi. It was presided over by Dr. Radha Kumud Mukherji.}}</ref>

The Indian activist and [[Hindu Mahasabha]] leader [[Vinayak Damodar Savarkar]] at the [[Hindu Mahasabha]]'s 19th Annual Session in [[Ahmedabad]] in 1937 propounded the notion of an ''Akhand Bharat'' that "must remain one and indivisible" "from Kashmir to Rameswaram, from Sindh to Assam." He said that "all citizens who owe undivided loyalty and allegiance to the Indian nation and to the Indian state shall be treated with perfect equality and shall share duties and obligations equally in common, irrespective of caste, creed or religion, and the representation also shall either be on the basis of one man one vote or in proportion to the population in case of separate electorates and public services shall go by merit alone."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://theprint.in/opinion/savarkar-wanted-one-god-one-nation-one-goal-modi-has-fulfilled-his-dream-with-kashmir-move/273447/|title=Savarkar Wanted One God, One Nation, One Goal|last=Sampath|first=Vikram|date=7 August 2019|website=The Print India}}</ref>

==Contemporary usage==
The call for creation of the ''Akhand Bharat'' or ''Akhand Hindusthan'' has on occasions been raised by [[Hindutva|Hindu nationalist]] organisations such as the [[Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha|Hindu Mahasabha]], [[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh]] (RSS), [[Vishva Hindu Parishad]], [[Shiv Sena]], [[Hindu Sena]], [[Hindu Janajagruti Samiti]] and [[Bharatiya Janata Party]].<ref name="Suda1953">{{cite book|last=Suda|first=Jyoti Prasad|title=India, Her Civic Life and Administration|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mVsNAQAAIAAJ|year=1953|publisher=Jai Prakash Nath & Co.|quote=Its members still swear by the ideal of Akhand Hindusthan.}}</ref><ref name="Ferguson">Yale H. Ferguson and R. J. Barry Jones, ''Political space: frontiers of change and governance in a globalizing world'', page 155, SUNY Press, 2002, {{ISBN|978-0-7914-5460-2}}</ref><ref name="Majumder">Sucheta Majumder, "Right Wing Mobilization in India", ''Feminist Review'', issue 49, page 17, Routledge, 1995, {{ISBN|978-0-415-12375-4}}</ref><ref name="Martensson">Ulrika Mårtensson and Jennifer Bailey, ''Fundamentalism in the Modern World'' (Volume 1), page 97, I.B.Tauris, 2011, {{ISBN|978-1-84885-330-0}}</ref> One organization sharing this goal, the [[Akhand Hindustan Morcha]], bears the term in its name.<ref>{{cite book|title=Hindu Political Parties|date=30 May 2010|publisher=General Books|isbn=9781157374923}}</ref> Other major Indian political parties such as the centre left-wing [[Indian National Congress]] do not subscribe to a call for Akhand Bharat, although India formally claims the entire region of Kashmir (territorially divided between India, Pakistan and China) as an integral part of India through official maps.

Pre-1947 maps of India, showing the modern states of Pakistan and Bangladesh as part of [[British Raj|British India]] illustrate the borders of a proto-''Akhand Bharat''.<ref name=Majumder/> The creation of an ''Akhand Bharat'' is also ideologically linked with the concept of ''[[Hindutva]]'' (Hindu nationalism) and the ideas of ''sangathan'' (unity) and ''[[Shuddhi (Hinduism)|shuddhi]]'' (purification). <ref name=Martensson/>

The first chapter of the [[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh]] textbook for standard VII students at Akhil Bharatiya Sanskrit Gyan Pariksha included a map depicting Pakistan and Bangladesh, which along with post-partition India, were territories that were part of "Akhand Bharat" and a trade union magazine of the same organization also included Nepal, Bhutan, and Myanmar.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ev4jAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT191|title=Partition and the South Asian Diaspora: Extending the Subcontinent|last=Ghosh|first=Papiya|date=21 March 2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317809654|language=en}}</ref>

While the leadership of the right-wing [[Bharatiya Janata Party|BJP]] wavers on the issue, the RSS has always been a strong proponent of the idea.<ref>Jyotirmaya Sharma, "[https://web.archive.org/web/20071206004630/http://www.hindu.com/mag/2005/06/19/stories/2005061900260100.htm Ideological heresy?], ''[[The Hindu]]'', 2005-06-19</ref><ref>Radhika Ramaseshan, "[http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050616/asp/frontpage/story_4874540.asp Advani fires Atal weapon]", ''[[The Telegraph (Calcutta)|The Telegraph]]'', 16 June 2005</ref> RSS leader H. V. Seshadri's book ''The Tragic Story of Partition'' stresses the importance of the concept of ''Akhand Bharat.''<ref>Ashish Vashi, "[https://web.archive.org/web/20120807032250/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-08-27/india/28176410_1_seshadri-narendra-modi-rss-hq Anti-Sardar Patel book sold from RSS HQ in Gujarat]", ''[[The Times of India]]'', 27 August 2009</ref> The RSS affiliated magazine ''[[Organiser (newspaper)|Organiser]]'' often publishes editorials by leaders such as the present [[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh#Sarsanghachalaks|Sarsanghachalak]], [[Mohan Bhagwat]], espousing the philosophy that only ''Akhand Bharat'' and ''sampoorna samaj'' (united society) can bring "real" freedom to the people of India.<ref>Manini Chatterjee, "[http://www.indianexpress.com/news/onlybyakhandbharat/22197/1 Only by Akhand Bharat]", ''[[The Indian Express]]'', 1 February 2007</ref> The call for [[Indian reunification]] has been supported by Indian Prime Minister [[Narendra Modi]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.deshgujarat.com/2012/03/24/a-day-would-come-when-sindh-will-be-a-part-of-indianarendra-modi-says-adding-that-a-grand-zulelal-dham-will-be-built-in-kutch/|title=Sindhis want Sindh in India?Modi gives example of Jews|date=24 March 2012|website=DeshGujarat|language=en-US}}</ref> and BJP National General Secretary [[Ram Madhav]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/rss-belives-india-pak-and-bangladesh-will-reunite-through-goodwill-one-day-ram-madhav/|title=One day, India, Pak and Bangladesh could reunite as Akhand Bharat: Ram Madhav|date=27 December 2015|website=The Indian Express|language=en-IN}}</ref>

In December 2015, following Narendra Modi's diplomatic visit to Lahore, Pakistan, the BJP National Secretary [[Ram Madhav]] (in an interview with Al Jazeera's Mehdi Hassan) described that "The [[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh|RSS]] still believes that one day [India, Pakistan and Bangladesh], which have for historical reasons separated only 60 years ago, will again, through popular goodwill, come together and ''Akhand Bharat'' will be created."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/rss-akhand-bharat/|title=RSS and the idea of Akhand Bharat|date=4 January 2016|website=The Indian Express|language=en-IN}}</ref> In March 2019, RSS leader Indresh Kumar claimed that Pakistan would reunite with India by 2025, that Indians would settle in and migrate to [[Lahore]] and [[Lake Manasarovar|Lake Mansarovar]] in Tibet, that an Indian-allied government had been ensured in [[Dhaka]], and that a European Union-style ''Akhand Bharat'' would form.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://scroll.in/latest/916896/pakistan-will-be-part-of-india-after-2025-claims-rss-leader-indresh-kumar-report|title=Pakistan will be part of India after 2025, claims RSS leader Indresh Kumar: Report|author=Scroll Staff|website=Scroll.in|language=en-US|access-date=8 August 2019}}</ref>

Former Indian Supreme Court Judge [[Markandey Katju]] advocated in Pakistani newspaper ''[[The Nation (Pakistan)|The Nation]]'' that the only solution to the ongoing dispute between India and Pakistan is the [[Indian reunification|reunification of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh]] under a strong, secular, modern-minded government.<ref name="The truth about Pakistan">{{cite news| url=http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/columns/02-Mar-2013/the-truth-about-pakistan| work=The Nation| title=The truth about Pakistan| date=2 March 2013| access-date=9 January 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110103720/http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/columns/02-Mar-2013/the-truth-about-pakistan| archive-date=10 November 2013| url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=IE2>{{cite news| url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/pakistan-allpraise-for-markandey-katju/1084053/0| work=The Indian Express| title=Pakistan all-praise for Markandey Katju| date=7 March 2013}}</ref> He expanded on the reasons for his support for a reunified India in an article for ''[[Madhu Trehan|Newslaundry]]'';<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.newslaundry.com/2015/12/08/we-must-reunite-why-pakistan-india-and-bangladesh-should-be-one-country|work=Newslaundry|title=We must reunite: Why Pakistan, India and Bangladesh should be one country|date=8 December 2015}}</ref> Katju advocated that such a state would be administered by a secular government.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.in/markandey-katju/india-and-pakistan-must-reunite-for-their-mutual-good_a_22033158/|title=India And Pakistan Must Reunite For Their Mutual Good|date=10 April 2017|website=HuffPost India|language=en}}</ref> Katju serves as the chairman of the [[Indian Reunification Association]] (IRA), which seeks to campaign for this cause.<ref name="Indica2019">{{cite web |title=Mission Statement of the Indian Reunification Association |url=https://indicanews.com/2019/02/07/mission-statement-of-the-indian-reunification-association/ |publisher=Indica News |language=English |date=7 February 2019}}</ref><ref name="Katju2017">{{cite web |author1=Markandey Katju |author-link=Markandey Katju |title=India And Pakistan Must Reunite For Their Mutual Good |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.in/markandey-katju/india-and-pakistan-must-reunite-for-their-mutual-good_a_22033158/ |work=[[The Huffington Post]] |language=English |date=10 April 2017}}</ref> The former Indian Deputy Prime Minister [[L. K. Advani|Lal Krishna Advani]], in April 2004, similarly endorsed a [[Indo-Pakistani Confederation|confederation of the sovereign nations of India and Pakistan]] as a powerful geopolitical entity rivaling the [[European Union]], United States of America, Russian Federation and People's Republic of China.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20051113/edit.htm#1|title=The Tribune, Chandigarh, India – Opinions|website=tribuneindia.com|access-date=9 August 2019}}</ref>
[[File:RSS calendar.webp|thumb|Akhand Bharat calendar released by RSS campaigners on 17 Nov, 2020 in Jaipur.|210x210px]]

Hindu nationalist political groups such as Shiv Sena, currently an ally of Indian National Congress, have sought the reclamation of Pakistan-administered Kashmir under the pretence of ''akhand bharat,'' especially after the abrogation of [[Article 370 of the Constitution of India|Article 370 and 35A of the Indian constitution]] (removing the semi-autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir) in August 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://zeenews.india.com/india/dream-of-akhand-bharat-fulfilled-partially-with-article-370-abrogation-shiv-sena-lauds-modi-amit-shah-2225094.html|title=Dream of 'Akhand Bharat' fulfilled partially with Article 370 abrogation: Shiv Sena lauds Modi, Amit Shah|date=6 August 2019|website=Zee News|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1498716|title=Govt, opposition united on Kashmir, divided on domestic issues|last=Wasim|first=Amir|date=8 August 2019|website=DAWN.COM|language=en}}</ref>

On 17 November 2020, the RSS campaigners released a calendar based on the "Akhand Bharat" theme. This calendar was prepared by the province patron of the [[Vishva Hindu Parishad]] in [[Jaipur]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-11-17|title=RSS प्रचारकों पर जारी किया अखंड भारत कैलेंडर, जीवनी-संघ के कार्यों का किया गया उल्लेख|url=https://zeenews.india.com/hindi/india/rajasthan/akhand-bharat-calendar-released-on-rss-campaigners-in-jaipur/787786|access-date=2021-09-16|website=Zee Rajasthan|language=hi}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Indian reunification]]
* [[Indo-Pakistani Confederation]]
* [[Bharat Mata]]
* [[Ghazwa-e-Hind]]
* [[Opposition to the partition of India]]
* [[Indian nationalism]]
* [[Hindu nationalism]]
* [[Hindutva]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/merge-pakistan-bangladesh-in-akhand-bharat-mvas-swipe-at-bjp/articleshow/79379667.cms Merge Pakistan, Bangladesh in Akhand Bharat: MVA's swipe at BJP]
* [https://scroll.in/latest/979191/ncp-will-welcome-bjps-decision-to-merge-india-pakistan-bangladesh-says-maharashtra-minister NCP will welcome BJP's decision to merge India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, says Maharashtra minister]

{{irredentism}}

[[Category:Anti-Pakistan sentiment]]
[[Category:Bangladesh–India relations]]
[[Category:Foreign relations of India]]
[[Category:Geography of India]]
[[Category:Hindi words and phrases]]
[[Category:Hindutva]]
[[Category:India–Pakistan relations]]
[[Category:Irredentism]]
[[Category:National unifications]]
[[Category:Political ideologies]]
[[Category:Politics of India]]

Akhand Bharat - Revision history

->ZI Jony at 06:08, 9 January 2022