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Congress's brand of secularism has taken a beating because the increasing radicalisation of indian muslims over the past 10-15 years and the rise of islamic jihadism in Pakistan. Constant concessions to the Muslims and a dogmatic adherence to socialist, central command economy lost them crediblity among the middle class voters.
The assassination of Rajiv Gandhi by an LTTE suicidal murderess left a void at the top of the party.

Older pro-US freemarket secularist parties are a part of the ruling BJP coalition; for example, the erstwhile Foreign Minister turned Economics Minister, Jaswant Singh was a leading light in the old Swatantra party, the most ProUS and free-enterprise party in the Indian polity.

IMO, the extremism and chauvinism of the BJP is exaggerated;
there is an increased nationalism, but view that in the eyes of an aggressive China to the east, a rabidly militant Pakistan financed by Saudi money to the west, a vicious proxy war conducted by Pakistan against India in Kashmir.

If the Congress Party broke free of the shackles of its reflexive antiAmericanism and anti freemarket system, it would probably garner a lot of votes. But it would also have to cease its affirmative action bias when it comes to Muslims; and stop coddling them in order to get their votes. They would also have to distance themselves from the Communist parties and the trade unions.

I'm not diminshing the horrendous antiChristian attacks that happened, particularly early in the 90's. However, no less a man whose ministry has a large presence in India, Pat Robertson, has commended the authorities in tracking down the perpetrators of those crimes.

In short, the secular, freemarket indian parties are a crtical part of the ruling coalition headed by the BJP.
In fact, Advani, who Greenway treats as the antiChrist, is a very open market, hi-tech booster, albeit being an RSS supporter from way back when.

Are the Hindu nationalists expansionist? Sure. They would like to see Pakistan gone and the equivalent of the British Raj in a geographical sense.

Do they claim the whole world as a Dar-el-Hindu? No.

The saffronistas do not claim Hinduism as a worldwide phenomenon. They don't seek to impose some kind of Hindu type sharia on a worldwide basis.

Primarily their objections are more along cultural lines; too much 'westernisation' of the young; an antipathy to American fast food; i think they torched a KFC a few years ago. They end up sounding and acting much like the French.