South Asia is undergoing a geopolitical transformation, with shifting alliances, economic dependencies, and strategic recalibrations reshaping the regional balance of power. India, traditionally the dominant actor in the neighbourhood, faces increasing challenges in maintaining its influence as Beijing deepens its economic and security engagements with countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh. While diplomatic outreach and economic partnerships remain vital, India possesses a critical but often underutilised asset—its military-to-military relationships.
This article delves into India’s military history in South Asia, its role in shaping regional stability, and how leveraging its defence partnerships can serve as a strategic tool to reinforce diplomatic ties.
The Colonial Period
Before independence, the Indian Army (comprising soldiers from now-independent India, Pakistan, Bangladesh as well as from Nepal) played a pivotal role in sustaining India’s 200-year British colonial rule, functioning as a primary instrument of military, political, and administrative control. It not only protected British interests within India but also extended the former’s power across Asia. As John Keay, the author of India: A History, notes, “The Indian sepoy was the hammer of the British Raj, deployed from the Hindu Kush to the South China Sea, quelling uprisings and expanding the empire’s reach.”
The Indian Army was central to Britain’s imperial expansion. It was instrumental in securing the Northwest Frontier to curb Russian influence from spilling into the Indian subcontinent. It played a decisive role in the Anglo-Burmese Wars, extending British control into Southeast Asia. Indian soldiers participated in the Opium Wars and helped suppress the Boxer Rebellion in China.
However, the British reliance on the Indian Army had its downsides. The period after the First World War saw a gradual erosion of British control over the military, driven by rising Indian nationalism, exposure to global ideas of freedom, and the economic and political strain of two world wars. By the mid-1940s, key events like the INA trials and the Royal Indian Navy mutiny convinced the British that their grip on the Indian armed forces was slipping, forcing them to accelerate the transfer of power to Indian leaders. This aspect is often not given due relevance in India’s independence story.
