With all the Muslim targeting, lynching, and murders that marked Modi’s early years, it is actually the vast mass of poor Hindus”the foot soldiers of Hindutva”who have suffered the most. Muslims in low-paid trades and small industries continue to produce tangible goods and services: brass components, food, carpentry, plumbing, machining, fabrication, repairs, printing, and more. They form the backbone of urban life.
Most Hindus, however, were concentrated in white-collar jobs”precisely what Modi’s economic illiteracy has devastated. Today, the Hindu at the bottom of the pyramid struggles to feed his family, while Muslim neighborhoods remain economically active, bustling with late-night food stalls and small workshops.
When I was posted in Meerut as a bachelor, I could always find a plate of chicken biriyani at 2 am in Muslim areas”evidence of an economy still alive and working. Nothing comes free, not even hate. Every emotion extracts a price, and for the Hindutva Hindu, that price has been devastatingly high.
