ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi’s repeated visits to Hindu religious sites while in uniform have sparked alarm over the growing ‘saffronization’ of the Indian military.
According to Kashmir Media Service, General Dwivedi visited the Kedarnath temple in Uttarakhand in full military uniform, accompanied by his family on Sunday, where he performed special Hindu rituals.
Earlier, he made a similar visit to the ashram of Jagadguru Rambhadracharya in Madhya Pradesh’s Chitrakoot.
The visit stirred further controversy when the Hindu spiritual leader reportedly asked the army chief for Azad Kashmir as “dakshina” (offering), to which, shockingly, General Dwivedi agreed.
These highly publicized religious gestures, conducted in military attire, have raised serious questions about the Indian army’s constitutional neutrality and its commitment to secularism.
Critics argue that Indian army chief bowing at Hindu religious sites in uniform not only violates the Indian Constitution’s principles but also sends a worrying message to Indian religious minorities that the military is increasingly aligning itself with the ideology of a “Hindu Rashtra.”
Indian Army or Hindu religious force
“Is the Indian Army being transformed into a Hindu religious force?” they ask. “Will the Army Chief ever make similar visits to a mosque, gurdwara, or church in uniform? Or is there only one religion that matters in today’s India?”
Observers warn that under the patronage of the RSS, Indian state institutions, including the military, are being systematically aligned with the Hindutva agenda.
General Dwivedi’s religious activities, they argue, are not isolated incidents but a part of broader ideological shift.
“If this trend of temple worship rituals in uniform becomes common in the Indian Army, what hope can India’s Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, and other minorities, place in its ability to protect them impartially as a ‘secular army’?”, a political analyst noted.
“The Army is no longer being seen as a national force — it’s increasingly resembling an RSS battalion.”
As saffron symbols and religious overtones seep deeper into Indian military ranks, non-Hindu personnel fear marginalization in an increasingly polarized force.
The big question now looms: Is the Indian army still or merely a foot soldier of the Hindu Rashtra project?
